Sinners
by VampiresAndLiars
Summary: After a century away, Belle Campbell returns to New Orleans with her brother, Max, who's crushing on everyone's favorite newbie vampire, Josh. For most of her immortal life, she and Klaus have been inseparable friends, but tensions build as trusts are broken, secrets are kept and past indiscretions resurface. She didn't return just to reminisce about old times.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I'm only gonna say this once, I don't own The Originals or it's characters. I only own the plot of this story and my OCs! Thank you. Enjoy :)**

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Song: The 1975 - _The City_

Bright lights loomed overhead as a young woman walked down the lively streets of the city she had called home many years before, New Orleans.

Her name was Belinda Campbell, though she definitely preferred Belle to Belinda. Her ebony hair blew gently to the side as a cool breeze swept through the streets. She reached up and quickly brushed it out of her face. The sound of her boots clicking against the pavement was all but drowned out by the noise of the people and cars that bustled around her.

She stopped and let her eyes scan her surroundings. This city had changed so much in her absence, but she recognized some familiar buildings. They were old, but she was older. She had been alive for nine hundred years, one of the perks of being a vampire. In all her years, there had never been a city she loved more than this one.

She smiled as she reminisced for a moment, before shaking her head and continuing on. Now was not the time for being nonchalant. Thanks to a tip from a friendly young vampire, she had figured out where to find her oldest and best friend.

Seconds later, she found the bar where she was told he would be, his favorite bar in the entire French Quarter, a little restaurant called Rousseau's.

She opened the door and stepped through the threshold, putting her hands on her hips as her eyes briefly scanned the room. She smirked when she finally spotted him sitting on a stool by the bar. As quietly as she could manage, she headed over to the bar. He must have heard or smelled her because he whipped his head around to face her, a small smirk played at his lips. "I should have known you'd show up here sooner or later." Klaus announced, his stormy blue eyes lit up with amusement.

"I was trying to surprise you." she pouted, taking a seat next to him.

He chuckled. "You should know better than to try to sneak up on a hybrid. I could smell you from the doorway." he muttered, taking a sip of his drink, bourbon from what she could tell.

"Damn." she snapped, dramatically slamming her fist down on the bar, gently of course. If she really hit it hard it would've broken in two more than likely. She noticed the empty seat on his other side. "Drinking alone, are we?" she jokingly asked.

He scoffed, picking up his glass and downing its contents. "I was about ready to leave." he said, standing up and taking out his wallet. He slapped a hundred-dollar bill down before turning to her. "Come on." He motioned for her to follow him.

"Aye, aye captain." she replied sarcastically, saluting him before hopping off the bar stool and following him out the door.

They started down the sidewalk before Klaus spoke. "So, what brings you back to New Orleans?" he asked.

Belle turned to look up at him for a second, he stood at nearly six feet tall, while she was a mere five feet at best, before scoffing. "What? I can't come back to see my favorite city and my best friend without a reason?" she demanded, laughing a little.

"I'm your only friend, actually." he teased, a hint of arrogance in his voice.

She punched him in the arm. "Jackass!" she snapped, earning a laugh from him.

"It's true." he said innocently.

She rolled her eyes. "Don't act like I'm not your only friend too." she said accusingly.

He chuckled. "Well, I do have Marcel, although we haven't been on the best terms lately." he mumbled gruffly. Klaus and Marcel had their differences in the past, apparently that hadn't changed.

Though she wouldn't dare say it out loud, Belle had always gotten a little jealous when Klaus would choose to spend time with Marcel rather than her. She knew it was childish, but she couldn't help it.

She let out a long sigh. "I just felt like coming back here, it's been ages." she said nonchalantly, looking around at the lights as they walked.

"Are you going to stay for a while?" he asked, trying to not sound as curious as he really was. It was just like him to act like he didn't care about anything.

She nodded, pushing her petite hands into the pockets of her jeans. "Yeah, I already got an apartment and everything." she said cheerfully, a small smile on her lips.

He nodded. "Well, you're always welcome to stay, Belle." he replied. She smiled, not bothering to respond. They strolled along in silence. She was perfectly at peace, the silence between them was comfortable and familiar. It was strange that they hadn't seen each other in years, but it felt like nothing had changed. That's the thing about old friends.

"So," she started, breaking the silence. "A little birdy told me that you knocked up some werewolf chick." she revealed, trying and failing not to smirk.

He was clearly taken by surprise by the sudden change of conversation. His steady stride slowed for only a moment before picking back up. "You heard about that?" he asked, letting out a sigh.

She giggled. "Yup." she said simply. "And I don't need or want a little sex ed lesson." she quickly added. "It's pretty self-explanatory."

He chuckled. "You wouldn't be the first to be surprised." They paused at the end of the sidewalk, waiting for a car to pass before walking across, taking their time. It's not like getting hit by would kill either of them, it just wouldn't exactly be pleasant.

She scoffed. "Man, I wish I could have seen the look on your face when you found out. I bet it was priceless!" she exclaimed, tossing him a quick glance. Klaus rolled his eyes, but didn't say anything else about the subject.

They walked a little while longer, until they were in front of Belle's new apartment building. "This is me." she said, slowing her pace to a stop. She looked up to the fourth floor where her room was. "Are you still at the compound?" she asked, turning back to face him.

He nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow Belle. Feel free to stop by." he said. She nodded. Without another word, they each went their separate ways for the night.

Belle jogged up the stairs until she reached the fourth floor. Instead of getting out her key, she knocked, hoping her younger brother Maxwell, Max, was there. A few seconds after knocking, the door squeaked open.

He poked his head through the door. "You're home early. I thought you'd stumble home around three a.m." he said accusingly. A chuckle escaped his lips.

She grinned and cocked her head to the side. "Yeah, I thought the same thing about you." she replied bluntly.

Max didn't entirely abide by his big sister's carefree philosophy of doing whatever you want and not thinking about the consequences, but he did like to have fun. For the past few years, his hobby had been going to clubs. He had boys over nearly every night; Belle never cared to learn their names since they would come and go so quickly.

She pushed the door open and shoved past her brother. Her eyes scanned the room, checking to see if he was alone. To her surprise, he was.

She turned to Max with raised eyebrows. "You don't have anyone over? I thought you went out."

He scoffed. "I did. I just didn't meet anyone I was interested in." He shrugged his shoulders, closing the door.

Belle kicked off her boots and plopped down on the couch that was still covered with plastic from the move. "I know that voice. You did meet someone, didn't you?" she taunted, grinning sadistically at him. "Come on Max, spill. Who is he?" she demanded.

He sighed, navigating his way past a few unopened boxes. He leant against the wall and crossed his arms stubbornly over his chest. "I didn't meet anyone. I just...saw someone." he revealed.

She moved to sit on her knees, eagerly grinning. "Go on. What'd he look like? Was he a human or a vampire?" she prodded. When it came to her brother's business, Belle was always fairly nosey. Then again, she was nosey about pretty much everything.

He rolled his eyes. "A vampire. A young, hot vampire with dark hair and deep brown eyes." he said in a light whimsical tone. His lips curved up into a wide smile.

Belle grinned even wider. It wasn't very often she found her brother to be so infatuated with someone. He wasn't exactly the romantic type. "Why didn't you talk to him?" she asked gingerly, shifting her position to crossing her legs.

He shrugged roughly, his demeanor quickly changing. "I don't know. Can we just drop it. I'm tired, I'm going to bed." he deadpanned. Without another word, he turned and stomped off to his room.

Belle huffed. "Well, someone's in a mood." she said gruffly.

Instead of going to sleep, she poured herself a glass of scotch and stepped out onto the balcony. It was now just past midnight. She took a long sip from the glass before resting her elbows on the railing and watched as the cars and people passed her by, busy with their own lives.

Sometimes she just enjoyed watching people from afar, wondering about what was going on in their lives. Who had had their heart broken recently? Who had lost a loved one? Who was perfectly happy with their life? Who was living in their personal hell? These were some of the many questions that passed through her mind as she looked out over the city.

New Orleans had in fact changed over the years. She had seen Klaus help to build it from the ground up centuries ago. She had seen generations of people live and die in this city. No matter what, things will always change. Sometimes it's gradual, sometimes it's sudden.

Yes, things were different now, even her.

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**A.N- Just so everyone knows, this story will not be following the plotline of season 1. To give you guys a rundown, Hayley is still pregnant, Klaus is in charge of New Orleans, but Marcel is still around and helping Klaus with everything. Everyone but Josh is living at the compound (Davina, Marcel, Hayley, and the Originals). I'm not sure if I'll include Cami in this story; if I can find a place for her then I will include her. Basically, everything is pretty normal right now, no crazy witches or anything like that. Pairings will include Hayley/Elijah and possibly Marcel/Rebekah. And of course my OCs will have their pairings. ;)**

**Please let me know what you guys think so far! Leave a review and PM me with any ideas or suggestions. I really enjoy getting feedback and constructive criticism is always welcome. Sorry for the long author's note, I have a habit of making long ones so I'll try to keep them short! Also, I'm going back to school very soon, but I'll still try to update every week.**


	2. Chapter 2

Finally, Belle managed to wake up. She pulled herself up into a sitting position, crossing her legs Indian-style at the edge of her bed. She glanced at the clock on her nightstand; it was just past 10:30.

As she had been told many times, mostly by Klaus, Belle slept much longer than the usual six or seven hours most other vampires prefered. She couldn't help it, she loved sleep, except when she had nightmares.

She groggily got out of bed and grabbed a dark blue tank top and a pair of black skinny jeans from the back of the chair that was in the corner of her room then quickly changed out of her pajamas and threw her hair up into a messy bun, not bothering with the hassle of curling or straightening it.

The tank top showcased the roses she had tattooed on her right shoulder and down her upper arm and with her hair up, her tattoo of the fluer de lis on the back of her neck was visible. She had other tattoos that where currently out of sight; she usually kept them covered.

After flipping on the light in her bathroom, she brushed her teeth and put on a little makeup. Belle normally didn't feel the need to wear a lot of makeup. In her words, she didn't give a rat's ass about what anyone thought about her. She didn't live to please others.

She turned out the light and padded over to the door. When she opened it, she was greeted by the unpleasant voice of one of her "frenemies", more enemy than friend, Rebekah Mikaelson, Klaus's annoying younger sister. She groaned as the blonde Original came into view. "What are you doing here, blondie?" she mumbled, clearly aggravated.

Rebekah sat on the couch with her legs crossed next to Max, who looked almost as annoyed as his sister. She turned her head to glance at Belle, sneering slightly.

"Do I need an invitation to visit an old friend?" Rebekah asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Belle scoffed as she walked into the small kitchen area, making a cup of tea. "You do realize you're still not funny Beks, right?" she asked, flashing her a condescending grin. She filled the tea kettle with water and placed it on the stove, turning it up on high.

Rebekah rolled her eyes. "I just wanted to stop by, see how you were." she said with fake enthusiasm.

Belle sarcastically squealed and slapped her hands over her mouth. "Oh my god, really?!" she exclaimed in a mocking, high-pitched voice. She dropped her hands and gave Rebekah an annoyed, and slightly pissed off, glare. "We both know you just love bugging me, almost as much as I love bugging you, cupcake." She grinned at an angry Rebekah, before turning to the tea kettle as it started screaming, steam shooting out of it like it would out of Rebekah's ears if they were in a cartoon. She picked it up and poured the boiling water into a striped mug and dropped a teabag in it.

Setting the kettle down, she rummaged through the cabinets below the counter before pulling out her personal supply of vervain oil. She poured the tiny vile into her tea before taking a sip, barely wincing. It only burned her a little, no more than a shot of tequila really. She had been on vervain for nearly all her life. When hanging out with Originals, she couldn't be too careful.

Rebekah raised an eyebrow at her. "You're still on vervain." she mused.

"Yup." Belle deadpanned, taking another sip of her tea. "You can go now. I don't really do small talk." she said, swatting as Rebekah like she would a fly. She padded over to a chair and sat down, glaring at Rebekah.

Rebekah rolled her eyes before getting up and heading toward the door. "Your manners haven't changed at all. And I assume you'll be by later." she mumbled in a plummy tone, opening the door and walking out, closing it harder than necessary behind her. She didn't bother to say goodbye either.

"Your manners are no better than mine, bitch." Belle called after her, knowing she would hear her. "God, I still can't stand her." she mumbled into her mug as she took another drink.

Max scoffed in agreement. "Yeah, tell me about it. She still kind of creeps me out thought."

Belle rolled her eyes. "You're such a pansy. Rebekah's no scarier than a clown or a spider." she insisted like it was a fact. Belle had never been intimidated by anyone really, not in this life at least.

"Clearly you don't know the meaning of scary. " he said lightly, shivering for dramatic effect. He got up and went over to the kitchen. "You want a blood bag?" he asked, opening the fridge and bending down to the bottom shelf, hoisting up a blood bag for her to see.

"Sure." she replied, setting down her now empty cup on the coffee table. He tossed it to her and, without turning around, she caught it. She pulled the cap off the tube and drained it quickly, wanting to finish it quickly so she could leave. She got up and tossed the empty bag in the trashcan as she passed it.

Belle put on a pair of black combat boots that were on the floor by her bed, too lazy to search for another pair of shoes. Then, she picked up her phone from her nightstand and shoved it into her white leather bag before slinging it over her shoulder and walking out. "I'm leaving. Wanna come with me or not?" she asked, now standing by the front door with a hand on the handle.

Max was now lying on the couch, watching a rerun of Supernatural; he had a huge crush on Jared Padalecki. "Nah, I'm good for now." he said mindlessly, his eyes never leaving the screen as he waved his hand at her to leave.

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever." she mumbled. "You do know he's straight. married and has small children, right?" she asked unbelievingly. Her brother had a soft spot for men with dark hair.

"A guy can dream, can't he?" he asked rhetorically in a sing-song voice.

She scoffed before opening the door and leaving. Each step echoed in the stairwell as her boots clicked again the concrete stairs.

When she got outside, she was greeted by the warm midday sunlight and the usual sticky humidity that clung to the southern air. She pulled out a pair of black cat eye sunglasses from her bag and slipped them on.

The city was wide awake and the streets bustled with life, as usual. As she walked down the sidewalk, her phone started ringing. She pulled it out of her purse and, to her delight, saw Klaus's name on the screen. She answered, putting the phone up to her ear with ease. "Hey Nik! What's up buttercup?" she greeted cheerily, trying not to grin. She only called him Nik when it was just them talking, never around anyone else.

Klaus let out a throaty chuckle. "Would you be interested in joining Marcel and I for drinks?" he asked.

She laughed under her breath. "Getting drunk before noon? Honey, you know that's what I live for. Sure!" she answered happily. Her voice was light and ringing. "Same place as last night?"

"Yes."

"Great. I'll be there soon." she answered before hanging up. She put the phone back in her bag and turned down the street to the bar.

A few minutes later, after pushing her way through the traffic, she walked through the door at Rousseau's.

She spotted Klaus and Marcel sitting along the bar with a few other day drunks and reluctantly took a seat by Marcel since the one by Klaus was occupied by large, sad looking man who had at least five empty beer bottles in front of him.

"Good morning gents." she chimed. She swiveled around the face them and rested her elbows on the bar.

"When did you get back in town?" Marcel asked, looking over at her while taking a drink of his scotch.

"Last night." she said flatly.

A blonde bartender walked over to them. Her name was Camille, according to her name tag. "What can I get you?" she asked, setting aside the rag she had been using to wipe down the bar.

"Whiskey, neat." Belle replied, propping her elbows up so she could rest her chin in her hands. She smiled in what most people would assume was a polite way, but it looked a lot more menacing when you were on the receiving end.

The bartender gave her a small smile in return, not looking as terrified as a lot of humans did in the old vampire's presence. She filled up a glass and set it down in front of her.

"Thanks, Camille." she said, trying not to chuckle at the girl's name. It was pretty old school.

The bartender chuckled. "Cami, actually. Camille's more of an old woman's name." she said, shaking her head.

Belle scoffed. "I say the same thing about my name."

Cami raised an eyebrow at her. "What is your name? If you don't mind me asking." she asked politely.

She smirked. "Please. You just met me. You'll have to earn it." Belle said slyly, taking a sip of her whiskey.

"It's Belinda." Marcel said abruptly, rolling his eyes.

Belle punched him in the arm, not hard enough to knock him down like she wanted to but hard enough that it would hurt. He winced as they exchanged annoyed glares. "Belle." she added.

Klaus cleared his throat. "Will you two ever stop bickering?" he asked in a gruff voice, shooting a glance at them while taking a long drink from his glass.

"Does a bear shit in the woods? Both are stupid and obvious questions." Belle shot back, sticking her tounge out at him. If it were just them, Klaus probably would've laughed, but since they weren't he just rolled his eyes.

He had always been like that, rigid. She was one of the few people he ever let in to see his fun, carefree side. Well, what was left of it. A thousand years of hurt and misery had morphed him into someone completely different than the man she had met all those years ago. Then again, she wasn't the same either.

Belle glanced over at Cami, who seemed to just notice the large lapis ring on Belle's right middle finger, her daylight ring. A look of recognition and realization filled her eyes. "Oh. You're a," she started, a little flabbergasted.

Belle giggled. "Vampire?" she whispered, leaning in a bit for dramatic effect. She was a lot of things, and melodramatic was definitely one of them. Cami nodded. "So, you're in on the loop? Fantastic." Belle muttered sarcastically.

There were several seconds of tense, awkward silence. "Well, this has been fun." Marcel mumbled, finishing his drink. "But, we have some things to do, right?" He turned to Klaus.

"Yes, well, I do." Klaus snapped, smirking. "You're just tagging along." he added. Klaus took every chance he got to put other people down in what he saw was their place, below him.

Marcel growled under his breath, about to shoot something back. Belle stopped him. "Hey, how about I tag along with you. Three's company, right?" she chimed. She pulled $10 from her purse and put it on the bar, finished her drink and got up. "Let's go."

The two men exchanged slightly heated looks before listening. The paid for their drinks, got up and walked out. Belle trotted off after them.

A small part of her, the more childish one, was actually sort of relieved that things were once again tense between Klaus and Marcel. In her eyes, it meant that Klaus would spend more time with her. She refused to admit to herself why spending time with Klaus was so important to her. She just couldn't.

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**A.N.- Sorry this was sort of uneventful. Next chapter will get into a little action. Plus I'm thinking about including a flashback ;) Please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A.N.- I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for taking a little while to get this up. I haven't gotten as many reviews as I would've liked and it's pretty discouraging, I have gotten plenty of follows and faves though. Anyway, it would mean so much if anyone who's reading this would please post a nice review if you liked this chapter or have any questions. I'm open to ideas and constructive criticism, so please tell me if you have any! Please review and I hope you guys enjoy :) Oh, btw Josh has a daylight ring (to avoid confusion)**

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They took Klaus's car down to the docks, apparently there was something there that needed to be dealt with. Belle couldn't really care less, but she went anyway. It's not like she had anything better to do.

As they walked down the boardwalk she looked out at the boats along the harbor, not listening to the words that Marcel and Klaus were exchanging. She was pulled into the memory of when she had first arrived in New Orleans over 300 years earlier.

_1712 - New Orleans_

Belle had received several letters from Klaus, going on and on about this colony he was helping to build. He encouraged her to visit as soon as she could. Finally, she gave in. She was stubborn and hardheaded at times, but she could never say no to him.

A large wooden ship dropped its anchor at the docks, it's sail swaying gently in the wind. Belle stepped out on the deck, looking out at the land.

Her eyes moved to search the docks for her friend. She smiled as she spotted Klaus standing with his hands behind his back, awaiting her arrival.

She had arrived alone, apart from two men she had compelled to steer and control the boat. There had been other passengers with her when they had first set sail, but they hadn't exactly lived to complete the journey, after all, she needed to feed. Their bodies were piled up in the storage space of the ship along with her belongings.

When she got off the ship, it took everything in her to not run into his arms and hug him. She knew Klaus wasn't a fan of public displays of affection anyway. They hadn't spoken face to face for five years and though she wouldn't say it out loud, she missed him. So, she walked carefully over to him, the small smile on her lips was mirrored on his. "It's been a while since I saw you last." she said smoothly. It was an obvious thing to say, but she was at a loss for other words.

He chuckled, taking a step toward her with his hands still behind his back. "So it has." he replied.

She stopped, now just a few feet away from him. She took in a deep breath and looked around, taking in her new surroundings. "So, this is the infamous New Orleans."

He nodded. "There's still much that needs to be done." He turned around and gestured for her to join him, extending his arm to her. She stepped forward and took it, looping her arm through his. They walked in perfect synchronization down the boardwalk and headed toward the newly forming city.

Belle looked around in awe at the work that had been done so far. Several buildings had already been built and many others were in construction. "This is wonderful, Nik." she exclaimed quietly. A wide smile graced her lips. She looked up at Klaus who too was smiling. It had been a while since she had seen him like this, proud and happy.

*_Present_*

Now when she looked over to Klaus, his expression was stern, he lips were pressed together in a hard line and his eyes had a subtle furry burning in the back of them. She missed seeing the kinder side of him.

"So, what exactly are we here for?" she asked, breaking the tense silence between the three of them.

Keeping his gaze straight ahead he replied, "One of my men was killed last night as he was patrolling."

"So we're here to investigate?" she quickly interjected. She strode ahead a little more so she could keep up with him.

"Essentially, yes." he replied.

"Killing another vampire in the quarter is forbidden, it's one of our most important rules." Marcel added.

Belle rose an eyebrow in question. "And what makes you so sure another vampire killed him?"

They rounded a corner around one of the large metal storage containers and the victim came into their view. He lay there, one of his legs bent at an odd angle and his heart torn from his chest, just a foot or two away from his grey, dedicated corpse.

"Ahhh." she said bluntly as she eyed the body.

Marcel bent down to examine the body. A young vampire with dark hair and brown eyes walked over to talk to Klaus. Not only was he young physically, but Belle could tell by his caution and fear around Klaus that he wasn't very old vampire-wise. Then again, even some older vampires were afraid of Klaus.

"Joshua, I hope you've brought me some good news." Klaus announced, giving the boy an intimidating glare.

He hesitated. "Well, we don't have any leads yet. But don't worry, I am working on it." he replied apprehensively, trying to stop his voice from shaking.

Belle couldn't help but grin at his awkwardness. He seemed like a nice kid. She guessed that Klaus had been a little rough with him, so she stepped in to try to smooth things over.

"Hello, I'm Belle." she greeted with a friendly smile. She stuck her hand out to him. "Nice to meet you." Her voice was calm and welcoming.

He smiled back and cautiously shook her hand. "Nice to meet you too. I've never seen you here before."

"I just moved back." she replied simply, sticking her thumbs into the pockets.

He nodded. "Oh, cool." Josh said awkwardly.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I believe you have work to attend to." Klaus said to Josh, tossing him a stern look.

Josh nodded quickly. "Uh, yeah. Right. See ya later." he said to them.

"Hey Josh," Marcel called. Josh turned to him. "Stop by the compound later if you find anything, okay?"

Josh nodded. "Sure thing." He turned around and walked quickly back to his car and drove away.

"Nice kid." Belle mused, turning back to the matter at hand, the dead vampire. After seeing so many over the years, it had lost its appeal. Dead is dead, what's so intriguing about it? She sighed heavily. "I'm bored." she said flatly, her lips twisted in discontent.

"Oh, by all means don't let us ruin your day. Please, feel free to leave if you're displeased. You are the one who invited yourself after all." Klaus snapped sarcastically. To most people it would've sound like he was being mean, but she knew he meant it in more of a playful, friendly way.

She waved her hand in his direction. "Don't be an ass. And yes, I think I will leave. I'll probably stop by the compound later." She turned to Marcel and grinned. "See ya later, muffin." she taunted, laughing at his annoyed expression.

He rolled his eyes. "Just go Belle." he muttered.

She chuckled before turning and walking away from the docks. It wouldn't take her very long to get back into town. Maybe she'd stop by that little bar again, or maybe just look around. There were so many new things in New Orleans, mostly tourist attractions.

She strolled down the street and decided to stop by a bar where the town's nightwalkers hung out during the day. She was hoping the find someone there, someone who could help her.

The windows of the bar were boarded up, blocking out the sun's rays that could burn them to ashes. Belle was thankful she didn't have to live like that, always hiding from something as simple as sunlight. The room was lit with dull, low hanging lamps and some twangy country music played in the background.

She walked over to the bar, took a seat and ordered a glass of vodka. She took a sip of her drink and turned the man sitting next to her. He was blonde and wore a she f cap. "You wouldn't happen to know where I could find a vampire by the name of Samuel Rivers, would you?" she asked, not bothering to introduce herself.

He took a sip of his beer and turned to her. "Who wants to know?" he asked, setting the bottle down. He looked her up and down suspiciously.

She rolled her eyes. "Someone who's old enough to easily rip your head off your shoulders." she snapped. She took a sip of her drink and locked eyes with him.

He seemed slightly alarmed, but didn't give in. "Why do you want to know?" he pressed further.

She shrugged. "Old friend. I just wanna say hi."

He narrowed his eyes, not convinced, but not caring enough to question her further. "He's over there by the pool table." the man said, pointing to a tall man with dirty blonde hair, tanned skin and green eyes.

She nodded. "Thanks." she deadpanned. She downed what was left of her drink and strode over to the man.

He didn't look up as she approached him.

"Are you Samuel?" she asked, putting on her best sweet and innocent voice.

He glanced up from his game. "I might be. Who the hell are you?" he asked.

She rolled her eyes, her lips turning into a frown. "You're in no position to be asking questions, that'll be my job." she spat.

He stood up straight, towering over her. It didn't bother her, she was much more frightening. "What's that supposed to mean? Is that some kind of threat, princess?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

She rolled her eyes and grabbed his arm tightly, feeling the bones cracking under her grip. He cringed. She pulled his down and looked him straight in the eyes. "We can do this the easy way, or I can kick your ass. It's up to you." Her voice was full of warning.

Despite her intentions being perfectly clear and frankly unfavorable, Samuel wriggled out of her grip. "You're crazy, lady." he spat. He turned around and went out the back entrance.

"So I've been told." Belle muttered to herself. She flashed after him out the door and came up behind him. He heard her and turned around, but before he could say or do anything, she snapped his neck. He dropped and smacked the ground with a distinct thud. "I guess I'll have to kick your ass then."


	4. Chapter 4

**A.N.- Please review and enjoy :)**

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Belle had shoved Samuel into the trunk of her car and went out to an abandoned building just outside the city limits. She had him tied up to a metal chair and injected him with enough vervain to keep him from attempting to break away.

For over an hour she had been torturing him, burning him with vervain, slicing into his skin with knives over and over again before he could heal. She pulled out several tricks from her hat of torturing expertise that she had learned over the years, mostly from Klaus, and yet he said nothing.

She took the knife in her hand and dug it into his side, twisting it as he screamed out in agony. "You ready to talk yet? Where is she?" she demanded, a hint of annoyance in her tone. She pulled out the knife and grabbed his hair, forcing him to look into her eyes. "Where is Charlotte?" she snapped. There was a fire burning in the back of her eyes, determination.

He opened his mouth, his bloodied lips trembling. "Go to hell." he whispered.

She backed off, smirking. "You know, you're as stubborn as I am. I admire that, I really do." She walked over to a silver tray that was filled with various weapons and picked up a vile of vervain oil and an eye dropper. She stuck the tube into the bottle and filled it, careful not to get any on her skin.

Her boots clunked against the concrete floor, echoing throughout the space as she approached her victim once again. She titled his head back and emptied the dropper into one of his eyes. He screamed as it burned him. "Stop it, please!" he pleaded, gasping in pain.

"I'll stop when you tell me where she is." she answered bluntly.

He hung his head before whispering. "I've said it once and I'll say it again. I don't know. I haven't had any direct contact with Charlotte in years." he insisted. His sweaty hair hung down over his eyes and he looked up at her.

She stared back at him with cold eyes. "And why would that be?" she asked, squatting down in front of him so she could look him in the eyes.

"She's been laying low for a while, probably trying to stay away from psychos like you." he snapped quietly, glaring into Belle's icy blue eyes.

She grinned at him, chuckling emotionless under her breath. Her expression hardened after a few seconds. "If she's trying to 'lay low' then why was I told that she was here in New Orleans, huh? Maybe another one of her little pawns blabbed. Or, on the other hand, maybe they were lying. Is she here, or isn't she?" Her voice was low and sinister, intimidating.

He saw the threat in her eyes, what she was willing to do. "Kill me. She'll do it anyways if I tell you, so go ahead and get it over with." he begged.

She saw the undeniable look of fear and defeat in his eyes, and she pitied him. She let out a sigh and stood up straight. "I'm not going to kill you, I'll leave that to her." she decided. She took a few steps back, pacing back a forth, debating what to do next. After a few seconds she flashed back in front of him. "Now answer the damn question. Where is she?" she nearly screamed, now just inches away from his face.

He flinched, caught off gaurd, and averted his eyes. "She's here." he muttered, it was almost impossible to hear. His lips barely moved to form the words that would surely nail the lid on his coffin.

"Good. That wasn't too hard, was it." she stated sarcastically, going behind the chair and untying the ropes that were soaked in vervain, they burned her fingers as she did so. "I'm guessing that you won't tell me anything else, so I think we're done here. And I'm sure you won't tell anyone about this little incident since you'll no doubt be dead by tomorrow." She flinched as she finished undoing the final knot, and the rope fell to the floor. She undid the ropes that were binding his feet next.

"Thanks for the concern." he mumbled, rubbing his raw, burnt wrists.

"Don't mention it." she snapped back.

After quickly gathering her supplies into a black duffel bag, she turned back to Samuel who was still slumped over in the chair, too weak to stand. "Well, this is where I leave you." she announced after a second, smiling at him. It was the kind of smile that seemed to say, "_If I see you again, I'll rip you're god damn heart out."_ And with that, she flashed out to her car, thew the bag in the trunk and drove away.

As she drove back into the city, her phone rang from her bag. She reached over and grabbed it from the passenger's seat and checked who was calling, it was Klaus. She let out a groan before answering it. "Hey Nik. What's up buttercup?" she chimed cheerfully.

He snorted. "I was just wondering if you were planning on coming by the compound. You did say you'd stop by earlier, didn't you?" he asked.

She mentally kicked herself. "Uh, yeah. I'll be over shortly. I'm glad you reminded me, I forgot. God, I hope I'm not turning into ditsy little Rebekah." she giggled, trying to play off her tardiness as just being forgetful instead of admitting that she had been preoccupied. No doubt Klaus would be unhappy with her torturing the innocent vampires of his city.

She told herself that she wasn't technically lying go him, she just wasn't sharing the whole truth. That wasn't as bad, right? Her gut told her that it was, but she ignored it. She still felt guilty.

He chuckled on the other line. "Don't worry, I'll tell you if you start acting like Rebekah. Do you want me to let her know what you said?" he asked jokingly.

"Oh, please do. I love it when she gets mad. It just gives me a reason to kick her ass." She laughed forcibly, distracting herself from the guilt.

"Sure, sure. I'll see you soon." he said finally before hanging up.

Belle let out a long sigh. "Niklaus, your manners are as always without equal." she muttered with a chuckle, remembering all the times she had heard Elijah say those same words to Klaus.

One of the many things she had always loved about the Mikaelsons was how they almost constantly bickered. It reminded her of how she and Max acted, only their bickering had never led to one of them being daggered and stuffed in a coffin for years.

As she drove toward the compound, she cranked up the radio so loud she was sure the people walking by could hear it. It was a way for her to block out her thoughts when they got too loud, and right now they were definitely screaming.

She pulled up to her old home; it hadn't changed a bit. The compound had been her only longterm home since she had been human. Living with the Mikaelsons had always meant having to move around when Mikael caught up with them. She was thankful they wouldn't have that problem anymore now that he was gone.

Belle had only lived on her own a handful of times. She just didn't like being alone, one of the things she and Klaus shared.

Before she got out of the car, Belle checked herself in the rearview mirror. Torture typically did a number on her. Thankfully, the only thing out of sorts was a spot of blood that had spattered on her forehead. So, she licked her thumb and wiped it away. She then snatched her phone from her purse and headed inside.

Just as she entered the front door, she was greeted by an all too familiar face. "Elijah," she said, a small grin on her lips. "How nice to see you." She took a few steps closer to him, now just a few yards away.

Elijah was leaning against a wall, arms crossed over his chest. "Belinda, it's a pleasure to see you again." he replied in a monotone voice. His expression was virtually blank. They had never exactly been close, probably because she had always loved to push his buttons and he had rapidly grown tired of it.

She looked him over from head to toe. "I should've guessed you'd be one of those suit-wearing monkeys. You've always been pretty white bread." she mocked, a sly giggle slipping through her lips.

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "I don't suppose you stopped by to mock me, now did you." He glanced over his shoulder for a moment. A women's voice rang from the other room, one that Belle didn't recognize.

She smirked, curious. "Of course not." she answered, her eyes looking in wonder at the place the voice had come from.

She briskly crossed the floor past Elijah, purposely bumping into him as she started into the room. It was the compound's living room, again just the same as she remembered, aside from a few new items of furniture.

Lying on the couch on her side, legs hanging over the edge a little, was a woman not much older than twenty with chocolate brown hair and matching eyes. Belle noticed that she had a small baby bump as well.

She smirked, not trying to be rude. It was more of an involuntary response. "So, you must be Klaus's werewolf baby moma." Belle said, a hint of zeal ringing in her voice.

The woman's eyebrows furrowed in both annoyance and confusion. "Hayley." she corrected in a stern tone. "Who the hell are you?"

Belle chuckled, shaking her head. Hayley certainly had spunk, which Belle liked. It reminded her of herself. "Belle. I'm an old family friend." she replied, stepping further into the room, Elijah right on her heels.

She noticed the dark haired boy from the docks, Josh, sitting on a couch on the other side of the room with a young girl, no doubt still a teenager. She too had dark hair and blue eyes.

"And you are?" Belle asked the girl.

"Davina." she replied, a little uncomfortably. Belle had a tendency to come on too strong.

"I assume you're through terrorizing everyone." Klaus boomed, walking into the room and tossing Belle a partly annoyed, partly amused look.

She sarcastically stuck out her bottom lip. "I'm not terrorizing anyone. I'm being absolutely peachy." she insisted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Well then, make yourself at home. I believe Elijah and I have things to do." Klaus said, turning to Elijah.

She raised an eyebrow. "More things about the dead guy at the docks?"

He nodded. Without another word, he turned around and headed back toward the front door, gesturing for Elijah to follow "Try to behave yourself." he called, his voice echoing from the other room.

Belle rolled her eyes. "Dick." she muttered, trying to hide a smile. He had always been a flirt, something that she both loved and loathed equally.

Ignoring everyone's amused looks, she proceeded to make awkward small talk with three strangers, which was mostly just her telling them embarrassing stories or laughing at her own jokes. She wasn't exactly a people person, which explained why most people considered her to be a social pariah and why her only friend was one of the most feared and hated supernatural beings on the planet.

Surprisingly, she and Hayley got along quite nicely and had a lot of things in common. It had been a while since Belle had met someone who was a little more like her. Josh and Davina chimed in every once and a while, but for the most part they had their own conversations.

The sun was setting when Max arrived, walking abruptly into the room. "Come on Belle, we still have a lot of shit to unpack at home." he shouted as he entered the room.

Belle groaned into the drink in her hand as she took a sip of it. "Fine." she agreed. She set her drink on the coffee table and sat up straight. "Since when do you call the shots?" she grumbled, standing up and stretching slightly.

Max's eyes wandered away from his older sister to the other side of the room where they met with Josh's. His face blushed bright red and he averted his eyes, turning away and running a hand over his face.

Belle noticed the exchange and grinned widely. "Oh my god, is that," she started, looking from one boy to the other, one hand over her gaping mouth. "Max, is this the cute guy you saw?" she asked, squealing dramatically behind the hand the was clasped over her mouth.

Max continued to avoid her eyes.

Josh spoke up. "I'm sorry, umm, are you talking about me?" he asked in disbelief, his cheeks turning crimson at the idea.

Belle nodded. "Aww, that's adorable. My baby brother has,"

Max cut her off. "Come on, let's go." he pleaded, eyes locked on the floor.

She laughed at his embarrassment. "Fine, fine." she relented, dropping her hand from her mouth. "Let's go, lover boy." she whispered, grinning at him. She put on a straight face and crossed the room, turning at the enteryway to say goodbye. "See you guys later." she said, giving them a quick wave.

They waved. "Bye."

She and Max turned around and walked out. At the front door, they met Klaus and Elijah. While Elijah went past them, Klaus lingered by the door.

"Go on Max, I'll be there in a little bit." she assured him, giving her brother a nod.

He hesitated, but nodded anyway and walked outside to his car, pushing carefully past Klaus. They had never really gotten on well.

"So, how's your evening been?" she asked as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

He shrugged. "Nothing too interesting I can assure you. How was yours?" Klaus asked, letting out a quiet, exasperated sigh.

She shrugged, mimicking him. "It was okay. Hayley's a doll." she said, grinning a little.

Klaus snorted. "Sure, sure." he muttered, shaking his head.

She rolled her eyes. "Well, I'm gonna go. Goodnight, Nik." she said quietly, looking away and moving past him.

He grabbed her by the arm as she walked by. "Belle," he said in a low voice. Her heart skipped a beat and she bit her bottom lip, wondering what he wanted.

She turned around to face him, clearing her throat. "Yes?" she asked in a small voice.

He held her gaze for a few seconds before finally speaking. "There's blood on you." he said gruffly. His fingers grazing the hem of her tank top, sending a shiver up her spine.

She hesitated for a second, trying to play it off with a clever and convincing explanation. "Whoops, I had a bite earlier. Guess I got a little messy." She shook her head and scoffed at herself. She never broke away from his gaze, trying to be convincing. "Don't worry, it was a tourist, not a local. I know the rules." she added.

Klaus raised an eyebrow at her, seeming to wait for her to falter, but she didn't. He exhaled and nodded, believing her fib to be true. He trusted her. "Good. I'll see you tomorrow, then." He released her from his grasp and she walked off to her car.

She mentally kicked herself for the second time that day. How could she be so careless? She should've checked her clothes for blood before had she come.

She was thankful he believed her. Belle hated keeping this from Klaus, but she knew that if he did know, he would stop her. Not just because it was in his city, but because he looked out for her. But, she could take care of herself. It was her problem, not his. She only hoped that he wouldn't catch onto her trail. Klaus hated being lied to, everyone knew that.

She knew that she had to be more careful in the future. Things couldn't get screwed up, not now. She was so close to finally getting one of the few things she had wanted for the past nine hundred years, revenge.


	5. Chapter 5

**A.N.- Thanks for the reviews, follows, and favorites so far! It means a lot. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Please review :)**

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Song: Mumford and Sons - _Where Are You Now_

Belle walked among the roaring nightlife of New York City; the year was 1922. She stopped off in a hidden bar called McConnell's, going in through the back door. Prohibition was still going strong, so bars were hard to come by.

Smooth jazz music could be heard from the doorway, echoing as she walked down a short hallway to the main room.

At the front of the room next to the bar was a stage where a band was playing live music. Some people were around the stage, dancing and laughing in a drunken bliss. Others sat in booths, talking among themselves and drinking. In one of those booths, with a small group of men she didn't recognize, was Klaus.

She smiled and walked over with her head held high. Klaus looked up at her as she walked over, his lips curled up into a grin as their eyes met. "Belle, how nice to see you." he greeted.

"You too, Nik." she replied, smiling even wider.

Before the memory could continue, Belle awoke to someone shaking her arm. She groaned loudly, shoving the person's hand away pulling the comforter over her head. "Go away." she mumbled.

"Sorry to wake you, but we need to talk." Max replied, he sounded serious. That worried Belle.

She pulled her fluffy shield down low enough to see her eyes. She eyed him curiously. "About?" she asked, hiding her nervousness. What did he want to talk about? What did he know?

He sat down at the foot of the bed and rested his hands in his lap, twiddling his thumbs anxiously. "So, I finally went and saw Josh. I got his address from Marcel a few days ago, but I couldn't bring myself to go." he began, turning to his big sister for any sign of approval.

She put down the comforter and sat up. She raised and eyebrow at him. "Wait, this is what you woke me up from? You finally decided to grow a pair and you just thought I should know?" She rolled her eyes and ran a hand through her tangled curls.

He winced at her words like they were daggers that had stabbed him. "I just wanted to let you know." he insisted innocently. His eyes shifted from her eyes to the floor.

She sighed, scooting closer to him. "Max, I'm sorry. You know how grumpy I am in the mornings."

He snorted. "Yeah, especially When you're hungover." he muttered, smirking as he side-glanced at her.

She punched him in the arm, glaring. "Not the point." she snapped, rolling her eyes. "The point is that I'm your big sister and I care about your problems. I may not want to listen to them, but I still care." She put a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Now, continue."

Max smiled and exhaled before continuing. "Well, I went over there last night and"

Belle cut him off, "Let me guess, you two did the dance with no pants?" she asked, laughing under her breath. She always teased him about his "man-whore tendencies" as she so lovingly called them.

Max gave her a death glare. "No, actually we didn't." he said, as though it were obvious.

She raised a questioning brow at him. "Really? Wow. Color me impressed." she scoffed, a little surprised. "So, what did you do then?"

He shrugged. "Nothing. We just talked." He sounded a little surprised himself. "It was nice." For once in years Max sounded genuinely happy, a little lovestruck even.

She smiled at him, throwing her arms around him and pulling him into a tight hug, pinning his arms to his side. "Awww, Maxy." she squealed, rocking him back and forth as he sat awkwardly.

He struggled in her firm grasp. "Stop, Belle, Christ. It's not that big of a deal." he groaned, finally managing to push her away.

"Fine, whatever." she relented, her arms fell to her sides. "Can you get out? I have to get dressed." She stood up and walked over her closet.

"Sure." Max said before walking out.

As she stood in front of the open closet, thumbing through the rack of clothes, her mind started to wander.

It had been nearly a week since she and Klaus had had a moment, one where she had looked into his eyes and saw the brief flicker of longing burning in the backs of them, no doubt it had been mirrored in hers as well. Ever since then, thoughts she had forced herself to ignore came rushing up to the surface. He not only took over her thoughts, but also her dreams; it was maddening.

She shook her head and finished picking out her clothes.

Once she had gotten ready, she took her dose of vervain and went out.

As soon as she arrived at the Mikaelson's, she was met by Klaus and Marcel. "Hey. Where are you guys going?" she asked curiously.

"Why? You'll just get bored." Marcel snapped, going around her and walking out.

Belle turned to Klaus, raising her eyebrows. "Damn. What's his problem?" She resisted the urge to giggle. She always enjoyed the misfortune of people she didn't like.

Klaus shrugged. "Perhaps he's fed up with the responsibilities of helping me run the city." he said, a hint of amusement and derision in his voice. He smirked.

Belle snorted. "I doubt that." she said. He rolled his eyes at her before walking by her and motioning for her to follow. She quickly trotted after him, trying to match his long strides. "Where are we going?"

"To a meeting at St. Anne's church." Klaus replied, keeping his eyes locked if front of him as they walked down the street. She could see Marcel in the distance, about a hundred yards away. He strutted down the street without looking back to check if they were following, though of course he knew they were.

"With the human faction?" she asked as they rounded a corner.

He nodded. "Yes."

"I'm guessing it's still the same crowd, corrupt politicians and greedy middle-aged jackasses." she said expectantly.

"Did you really expect it to change now?" He let out a throaty, glancing over at her for a second.

As soon as they arrived before it, Belle recognized the church immediately. It had been a few years before she had left New Orleans. Only a few minor details had changed in that time.

Klaus held the door open for her as she walked up the last step. She walked in and he followed, going around her with a hint of urgency. When they entered the room, she saw Marcel just now taking a seat.

The room was eerily quiet until a man in priests robes stood up and started talking. "You're late." he boomed, folding his hands in front of himself as he walked over to stand behind the podium.

"On the contrary Father Kieran, I believe I'm right on time." Klaus snapped, a little annoyed no doubt.

One of the other humans gave Belle a dirty look as she took a seat in the front row on the other side of Marcel. "Who is she?" he asked gravelly.

She snorted. "I see the men around here still lack proper manners." she muttered, rolling her eyes. "But, to be polite I'll give a quick introduction. I'm Belle. I'm an old ass vampire and a former resident of this city." she said in a sightly honeyed voice.

Klaus cleared his throat. "Moving on to the point of this meeting, I believe I was told that two locals have perished in the past week."

"Yeah, killed by your filthy kind." one of the men announced, jabbing his chubby finger in Klaus's direction.

Belle snorted loudly. Everyone turned toward her with condescending stares. "You've got to be kidding me." she exclaimed. Her head fell into her hands as she started laughing. "I remember a time where if a human even dared to speak to a vampire like that they'd get their throat ripped out."

Marcel stopped her. "But no one's gonna do that right now." he urged, tossing her a cautioning glare.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm sorry Marcellus, but last time I checked you weren't the boss of me." she snapped. She resisted the urge to hit him knowing that it would only lead to a fight.

"Enough." Klaus roared, glaring daggers at the pair of them.

"Thank you." Kieran said calmly. "Now, there are in fact two locals that have been murdered by vampires this week and not only that, but two vampires have turned up dead as well."

Belle's stomach dropped. She prayed that the other vampire that had died wasn't Samuel. That would make her look bad and she didn't know who would start pointing fingers at her. She attempted to look calm as Klaus spoke.

"It appears we have a serial killer on our hands, a vampire at that. We're making efforts to stop them, but so far we don't have any leads."

"But we're working on it. We've got eyes all over town right now." Marcel added.

That made Belle even more worried. She knew she'd need to question other people around town before she could find Charlotte. She didn't want any of Marcel and Klaus's little spies hearing about her plans.

If Klaus found out there'd be no way he'd let her continue, not to mention how angry he'd be with her having lied to him. His trust was hard to earn and easily broken and ever since she had earned it far she managed not to break it broken it.

"Speaking of, Thierry told me something very interesting earlier." Marcel started, smirking at Belle. "He said you went down to vamp bar downtown, asking him if he could help you find someone named Samuel Rivers. And then Samuel turns up dead just a few days later. Any thoughts about that?" he asked in a raucous and accusing tone.

She glared at him. "Are you accusing me?" she demanded, trying not to growl at him.

"Marcel, now is not the time to make accusations. We'll discuss this later." Klaus urged. He folded his hands behind his back and leaned sideways against one of the pews. "If there is nothing else we need to talk about we'll be going."

Belle quietly exhaled in relief. As usual, Klaus had come to her aid.

Kieran nodded. "That's all that concerns the vampire faction I believe." he said.

"Excellent. Well, we'll hold another meeting next week. Same place, same time." Klaus announced before turning around and heading for the exit. Belle and Marcell followed him.

Once they were outside, Marcel spoke. "I've gotta meet some of the guys back at Rousseau's. I'll see you back at the compound." he turned in the other direction and shuffled past the crowd down the street.

Klaus and Belle turned down the street back to the compound. They walked in a stiff silence. She wondered if Klaus was thinking about what Marcel had said back at the church, practically accusing her.

Granted, she had tortured Samuel and lied about it, but she hadn't been the one to kill him and she hadn't killed the others either. She hoped with all her being that Klaus wouldn't be so easily swayed to believe Marcel. He knew her better than that.

They went back to the compound and luckily didn't talk about it any further. She and Klaus sat in the living room drinking and talking for over an hour before he got a call and left.

For a few minutes she sat alone with her thoughts and a bottle of Bourbon until Hayley walked by. Curiously, Belle called to her. "Hey, Hayley?"

Hayley turned to her with confused eyes. "Yes?" she asked, seeming a little unsure of what Belle wanted.

She hesitated before speaking, her was voice soft. "Do you know what it is? The baby I mean?"

Hayley chuckled. "Do you mean species or boy or girl?" she asked. She leant against the doorframe and placed a careful hand over her growing baby bump.

"Boy or girl."

Hayley smiled. "Uh, a girl, I think. I don't know for sure, but I feel like it'll be a girl." she said. Belle could hear in her voice how much Hayley already loved her baby.

A small smile tugged at the corners of Belle's lips. "That's good. You should hope it's a girl. They're a lot better to deal with, not as rowdy as boys are." Her voice was brittle, like she was tearing up. She chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

There was an unmistakable look of pain in the backs of her eyes, a look that showed more than any words could ever explain.

Hayley must've noticed this look, realizing what it's true meaning was. "What was her name?" she asked quietly. "If you don't mind me asking." she added. Her voice had a similar fragility in it.

Belle stayed quiet for a few seconds, debating whether or not she should answer. Finally, her voice broke the silence. "Lilith." she replied in a broken whisper, smiling a little. Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes, she wiped them away before they fell, not comfortable enough to cry in front of Hayley. She rarely cried in front of anyone, period.

Hayley smiled sympathetically. "That's beautiful." she said.

"So was she." Belle said, whispering now. After a few seconds she cleared her throat and fanned her eyes, laughing to avoid bursting into tears. "Well, I'm gonna go. It was nice seeing you, Hayley." she said suddenly as she stood up and headed for the front door, abandoning her unfinished drink on the coffee table.


	6. Chapter 6

**A.N. I'm so happy with the number of views and follows/favs I've been getting lately! I'm taking that as a good sign. Please keep up the support and be sure to leave a review. *fingers crossed* **

**Enjoy :) I worked really hard on this chapter!**

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Song: Lana Del Rey - _Dark Paradise_

The compound was a buzz when Belle arrived just after eleven o'clock in the late morning. Humans bustled about as they moved out the furniture from the courtyard and replaced it with decor, flowers and other festivities.

Klaus descended from the stairs to greet her, giving the crew a once-over, seeming to mentally note their progress in his typically controlling, bossy fashion.

She cocked an eyebrow. "Sprucing up the place a little are we?" she questioned. "Let me guess, you're having one of the infamous Mikaelson family parties." She smirked as he rolled his eyes.

"It's more of an effort to bring the French Quarter's supernatural community together." he retorted.

Belle scoffed. "Yes, nothing brings a group of people together more than booze and polite chitchat." she said as she moved past him, heading into the house.

He followed behind her, easily catching up to match the strides of her shorter legs. Klaus often used teased her about them, saying that they resembled the thin stems of dandelions.

With that thought, she noted how he had juristically changed over the years. His frequent witty banter had tapered off to an occasional joke, usually when they were alone. She wished he could be himself more around other people besides herself and one or two others.

Not the intimidating hybrid who was feared by nearly every man, woman, and supernatural being that crossed his path, but the kind and well-respected man she had met almost nine hundred years before.

England - 1185 

Belle sauntered through a dimly lit ballroom on the arm of her younger brother with her head held high.

As young and nomadic vampires they had bounced around from one city to the next, leaving when they got bored or wanted a change of scenery. They had returned to England months before and couldn't resist paying the rumored Original Vampires a visit. And so, they decided to attend a gathering that was being held at the mysterious family's castle.

Humans stood around talking to one another and drinking, enjoying the hospitalities of allusive Mikaelsons. Belle was a young vampire, but she knew another vampire when she saw one and so far she hadn't caught a glimpse of any, aside from Max.

"Do you suppose we will see them?" Max whispered in her ear.

She looked around the room as she replied, "I surely hope so." Her eyes hadn't stopped searching the room since they had arrived.

Suddenly, she caught a glimpse of a man from across the room. She moved her head to the side so she could see around the people who walked past him.

Finally, she got a good look at him. He was fairly tall with curly blond hair that hung down to his shoulders. The clothes that he was wearing were no doubt expensive, though that meant nothing. Everyone there was wealthy. She continued her investigation; there was something about him that stood out to her.

He turned in her direction for what couldn't have been longer than a second, but it seemed like hours in her mind. Their eyes met and she immediately knew that he was a vampire, hopefully one of the Originals. She knew it because of his eyes. Not because they were red, as vampires eyes could turn, because they weren't. They were a dark blue, like the ocean after a rough storm. It was because they were kind of eyes that had seen things. Gruesome things. Things that only someone who had lived at least two lifetimes could ever see. They were the kind of eyes that could tell a story. Their allure drew her in, like a moth to the light.

She seemed to gravitate toward him, slipping out of her brother's grip. He cautiously followed her. "Sister, where are you going?" She didn't answer him.

The mystery vampire turned to her as she approached him, a hint of mirth shone in his eyes. He must have been able to tell that she was a vampire because he didn't give her the usual prey look that vampires gave humans, like they were a walking and talking appetizer.

"Ahhh, young blood. What a joy it is to see some that I haven't turned myself." he exclaimed, keeping his voice low enough so only they could hear. He looked them over, seemingly appraising the pair as they came to a halt just a foot or two away.

Belle narrowed her eyes at him slightly. "So you are one of them? The Originals?" she asked.

He chuckled at her boldness towards him. His eyes flickered to Max, who stood like a statue by her side, blatantly a little frightening. "Indeed I am, love." he replied. "Who might you be?"

She spoke without hesitation. "My name is Belinda." She turned to her brother. "This is my younger brother, Maxwell." She stifled a giggle at Max's shocked expression.

He seemed to be at a loss for words for a moment or two. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my Lord." he managed to choke out. He cleared his throat nervously. He turned to Belle. "I'll return momentarily."

She nodded as he walked away before turning her attention back to the stranger. "I don't believe you have given me your name yet, my lord." she said. Her voice was calm and relaxed, like she was talking to an old friend.

"Forgive me, my name is Klaus." he replied. He leaned in ever so slightly, eyes locked on hers, and whispered, "but some prefer to call me by Nik." He flashed her a crooked smirk that instinctively evoked one from her.

"Nik, then." she said with certainty. "You may call me by Belle." she added, her smirk changing into a confident smile.

Before they could continue their conversation, Max came to stand by her side, grasping her upper arms lightly. "A word, sister?"

She glanced at him and let out a low sigh before turning back to Klaus. "Give us a moment." she said quietly.

Klaus nodded, folding his hands patiently behind his back.

Max pulled her off to the side of the room, away from eager ears. "I've just heard wonderful news about Spain, sister. I think we ought to go there. What say you?" he asked. There was a hint of excitement in his voice and in his eyes.

He loved adventure and traveling from place to place. So did Belle. But, there was a little voice inside her that said that now wasn't the time.

She shook her head at him. "No, Max. I am not ready to leave." She replied. Her eyes wandered over to Klaus, who had struck up another polite conversation with a few humans as he waited. A small smile tugged at the corners of her lips. "Not yet."

Present

They passed by the living room when Marcel called out to her. "Hey Belle?"

She pivoted on the heel of her sneakers and poked her head through the doorway. "Yeah?" she asked cautiously. Her gut told her that he was trying to start something. It was inevitable, after what had happened at the council meeting last week.

"Have you heard the news?" he asked. She noticed the accusing look in his eyes. That was enough to tell her where he was going with this.

Still, she played coy. "What news?" she asked, walking further into the room. She leaned against the row of bookshelves along the wall.

"There have been two other vampires that have turned up dead on the outskirts of town." he announced boldly.

"Let's not start this again, shall we." Klaus urged, though his tone showed that he knew it was going to happen no matter what he said.

She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him from across the room. "No, I hadn't heard that." she said bluntly.

And, in fact, she hadn't heard that. She had simply assumed that the two vampires would turn up dead after she had questioned them days before. Well, tortured was more like it. Charlotte's lackeys had a nasty habit of staying loyal to her, meaning that they would rather have their insides pulled out from their mouths, not that as Belle had done that, than dole out any information about her whereabouts.

He chuckled sadistically. "I'm sure you hadn't." he replied smoothly, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

Belle rolled her eyes, half annoyed and half angry. She didn't know whether she wanted to punch him in the arm or rip it off. "See you later, douchebag." she spat. With that, she spun around and walked out.

She spent the rest of the day at the compound. She talked to Klaus and Hayley for the most part; Elijah was handling the party plans and Rebekah had taken Davina with her to shop for dresses. Belle was pretty sure that Marcel had went with them to find a suit, so she didn't worry about running into him again and having to deal with his poorly veiled accusations.

The sun was about to set when she got back to the apartment, stopping by to get ready for the party. Max was in his room, adjusting his bow tie in the mirror. She noted a massive pile of suits and tuxes on his bed and chuckled. He turned around to face her, looking a little flustered.

"Need some help?" she asked, shaking her head at him in a way that only a big sister could.

He exhaled deeply, eyeing the mass of clothes behind him before looking back into her eyes. "Yes." he pleaded, giving her his best version of the puppy-dog-eyes.

She sighed, but relented. It wasn't very often that she saw her baby brother so distraught over a boy with his typically player lifestyle. Every once in a while though, he'd find someone he really liked. When he did, Belle tried to help him as best she could. She wasn't a relationship guru by any means; she just wanted to see him happy.

After three more changed of clothes and a glass of whiskey to calm his nerves, Max was finally ready. He was going to stop by Josh's apartment to pick him up before going to the party.

As soon as Max left, she ran off to her room to get ready. Though she didn't like doing too much to her appearance on a day-to-day basis, being a natural beauty, she absolutely loved getting dolled up for parties.

She curled her hair to enhance its already natural curliness and pulled it to one side, pinning it in place. Then, she started on her make-up. She kept it simple with a light pink blush, natural smokey eyes, and nude lips.

She shuffled through her closet in search of the perfect dress. At last, she settled on a beautiful light blue dress that matched her eyes. It was strapless and backless, flowing elegantly down to the floor. If it weren't for her four-inch heels, she'd be walking on it.

After giving herself a final look in the mirror, she headed out.

The compound was already packed when she arrived. Cars lined the block and crowds of people walked in after being checked off by the bouncer at the door. She snorted, a bouncer. Really? She guessed it was necessary to keep lurking tourists away. They probably thought it was a rave.

She didn't have to get her name checked off, the man recognized her immediately and let her in.

The courtyard was alive with people drinking and dancing. Vampires, witches, and werewolves alike, though they kept almost exclusively to their own faction.

Her eyes scanned the room until they found a familiar face, Hayley. She smiled and walked over to the soon-to-be mother of her best friend's miracle child. "Don't you look great." she appraised as she walked over.

Hayley smiled. "Thanks. You look amazing too." she replied. "It was a bitch to find a dress that could actually fit." She pouted, wrapping a hand around her belly. "I'm scared out of my mind thinking about her getting any bigger. Shopping will be even harder then."

Belle shook her head and waved her hand. "Don't worry about it. Having a baby is a wonderful thing. In the end, it'll all be worth it." she said, keeping her tone optimistic so as not to ruin the upbeat mood with details from her dreary old life.

She noticed that Hayley's eyes locked on a figure across the room, Elijah. She grinned and gently nudged Hayley's arm with her elbow. "Well, well, well. Looks like the pregnancy hormones are getting to you." She laughed.

Hayley discretely punched her in the arm. "Shut up." she growled in a hushed voice.

Belle saw her cheeks flush red and laughed even harder. "So, you do like him." she accused. Hayley glared daggers at her. "I knew it!" she smugly declared.

Before she said anything else, Belle noticed a figure that was walking behind Elijah. It was Klaus, clad in an all black suit. She used all her strength to keep her face relaxed and unchanged.

Apparently Hayley saw right through this. "Please, feel free to pick your jaw up off the floor." she whispered. "Along with your panties." she added with a laugh.

Belle rolled her eyes. Before she could shoot anything back, Elijah and Klaus walked up to them.

"I need a drink." Belle announced. She spun around and walked away in the opposite direction. She really did need a drink, but mostly just wanted to get away so she could collect her scattered thoughts.

She ordered a glass of white wine and leaned back against the bar as she sipped from it. She spotted Max in a corner talking to Josh and Davina. He seemed happy, which made her smile.

"Do you want to dance?" a voice asked from behind her. She knew it was Klaus before she even turned around. His voice was very distinct.

She shrugged casually. "Sure." She finished her drink and set it down on the bar.

He gingerly took her hand and they walked out to the dance floor. It was a slow song, so she placed one hand in his and the other on his shoulder, while he placed his other hand on her waist. She resisted the urge to shiver under his touch.

"Now that I have you alone, there's something I've been wanting to talk to you about." he said. His voice was low and a little husky.

She swallowed nervously, having two different scenarios in mind, the first being more optimistic and the second being more terrifying. She hoped it was the first one.

"What is it?" she asked, her voice breaking ever so slightly.

He looked her straight in the eyes before speaking. "Well, I've been thinking a lot lately about something I heard." he began.

"About what?" she asked, keeping her eyes locked on his as she tried to preject confidence.

"About what Marcel said." Her heart dropped. "At first I didn't want to believe it, but I'm afraid I have to ask. Do you have anything to do with the murders?" he asked.

Her eyes flickered away from his, a reaction of both nervousness and disbelief. She exhaled and looked back to him. "I didn't kill them, Klaus. You know that." she insisted. She narrowed her eyes questioningly at him. "Don't you trust me?"

He visibly stiffened. "Honestly, I'm beginning to think that I can't. You've been so secretive lately. How can I know that you're not lying to me?" he asked. He tried to disguise the hurt in his voice, but she heard it. They had always been nothing but honest with each other and she hated having to keep this from him.

Her rational side told her to be honest, but she wasn't up for being rational. She told herself to do whatever it took to keep him in the dark as best as she could.

In the past he had stopped her from pursuing her revenge, worried that she would get herself killed. Granted, there had been a few times where she had in fact come face to face with death because of it. That's when he told her to stop.

She shook her head at him. "God, Klaus. I've been your friend for centuries, stood by your side and been nothing but completely and utterly honest with you. Doesn't that mean anything?" she asked.

She expected to see some semblance of remorse in his eyes, but only saw his rising anger. "Of course it does. But I know when someone is keeping something from me. And, as you know, when it involves my city I won't stop until I find out." he said in a low voice, not bothering to hide his fury.

She scoffed at him. "Yeah, I think we're done here." she spat. Her face was hard as stone as she pulled away from him. "Goodnight, Niklaus." she said harshly. She only used his real name when she was mad at him, as his siblings did. She turned and quickly walked out, pushing past everyone roughly if they got in her way. If they were smart, they'd let her by without saying anything.

When she got home she was just as, if not more, angry as when she had left.

On her way to her room she grabbed two bottles of Jack Daniel's from the liquor cabinet. She slammed the bedroom door and unzipped her dress, shimmying out of it. She kicked off her heels and opened the first bottle.

By the time she went to bed, she had finished the first bottle and was halfway through the second. Blackout drunk and blissfully numb, she crawled into bed and immediately fell asleep; passing out would be a better way of describing it.

She didn't want to think anymore. Her thoughts were her enemy that night.


	7. Chapter 7

**A.N.- I'm sorry for not updating last week. On a sidenote, I'm going to New York City this week on a school trip and I'm so excited! Next week is my Fall Break, so I'll definitely update then. Thanks again for the support. Please review and enjoy :)**

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Song - Bastille: _Bad Blood_

Belle moved the paint roller up the wall, changing its original bone white color to a deep burgundy. She had already finished three walls of her bedroom and was applying the finishing touches to the last one. The furniture was pushed in by one or two feet and newspapers scattered the wood floor.

It was approaching noon. She had woken up hours before in the mood to do some redecorating. After the events of the previous night, she needed something to keep herself busy.

She heard the front door open and immediately knew it was Max trying to sneak back in after being gone all night. She set down the roller, climbed off the stepladder, and poked her head out the open door. "Nice to see you, slut." she called. Her lips twisted into a smirk.

Seconds later, he came into her line of vision. His hair was disheveled. His jacket rested on his arm. His bow tie was undone and hung loosely around his neck. He groaned. "God, Belle. Don't start with me." he groaned. He brought a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose as he shook his head at her.

She laughed and shook her head right back at him. "So, how was your night?" she prodded. She stepped forward to stand in the doorway and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Fine." he said. He walked forward to stand in front of his bedroom door, peering behind Belle into her chaotic room, noticing the strong stench of fresh paint in the air. "What the hell are you doing?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

She shrugged. "I wanted to repaint. We need some life in this shithole you call an acceptable place to live." she replied with a hint of arrogance in her voice.

He rolled his eyes. "I'm sorry, your majesty. This was the only decent place up for rent in the Quarter." he shot back. "So, what exactly happened last night?" he asked.

She played coy. "What do you mean? You got laid. I got drunk. That's how it is almost every night." she said smoothly.

He narrowed his eyes. "You know what I mean. What happened between you and Klaus?"

She averted his eyes. "Nothing." she said. "Nothing that concerns you anyway." she snapped sharply.

He rolled his eyes. "Fine. Don't tell me." He turned around and went into his room to change clothes and shower.

She wiped the paint on her hands on her already stained t-shirt and sighed deeply.

To say the least, she was surprised that her anger toward Klaus hadn't dissipated overnight; that's what usually happened after the fought. Some would say they were like an old married couple. They would fight one day and be perfectly fine the next. But this time was different.

They were both temperamental, pig-headed, sometimes borderline psychotic, but that's one of the reasons they got along so well. Sometimes however, their personalities worked against them. She was determined to keep him in the dark and he was determined to uncover the truth.

Deep down, she wanted to be honest with him, but she knew that right now she couldn't risk him ruining everything.

Her phone buzzed from across the room. She spun on her heel and walked over to check who was calling. It was Klaus. She visibly cringed before answering. "What do you want?"

He scoffed. "Well, I can tell that you're in an excellent mood." he mumbled.

"Sarcasm. How mature of you."

He chuckled and exhaled. "Belle, would you be willing to meet up with me and talk? There are a few things I'd like to discuss face-to-face." he said. His voice was relaxed, kind even. She didn't trust it, not for a second.

"Bullshit." she spat. "You act like I don't know you at all. Do you really expect me to believe that you've had some revelation overnight and are now ready to actually listen? I don't buy it."

Suddenly a knock echoed from the front door. "I knew you'd say that." he said. She could hear his voice coming from the phone as well as behind the door. She hung up the phone and tossed it on her bed, stomping to the front door. She was more than ready for an argument with him. Her anger continued to bubble under the surface, ready to explode.

She flung open the door and glared at Klaus. "Go away Niklaus." She attempted to slam the door in his face, but he caught it easily.

"Tell me the truth, Belinda." he snapped, getting right to the point. Patience had never been his strong suit.

"I did last night. I didn't kill anyone." she said.

His eyes narrowed. "So, you're telling me that you had absolutely nothing to do with the murders? I have resources that would say otherwise."

She rolled her eyes. "Are you really that paranoid?"

"My paranoia has nothing to do with it love. The odds are stacked against you. Now answer the question." he inched closer to her, never breaking his eyes away from hers.

She stared back at him, moving forward so they were only a breath apart. In any other circumstances, their proximity would have led to an awkward moment when they would almost kiss, but move away at the last second. But not this time. She had learned many tricks from Klaus and intimidation was one of them.

"I've already told you. I didn't kill anyone." she growled. "Now drop it." She was now shaking with anger, clenching her fist so tightly her knuckles turned white.

He backed off a little. "That wasn't the question." he barked. "I know you have something to do with what's been going on and I want to know what that something is. Now answer me!" He was nearly yelling by this point. Fury burned brightly in the back of eyes, but behind that was another emotion she recognized. Hurt. He knew that she was lying to him, something she had never done in all the years they had known one another, and he felt betrayed. That hint of emotion alone made her want to give in.

All she said was, "I'm not killing anyone, but I can assure you that what I am doing is none of your business." She didn't mean for it to come off as rude and insolent; she was just telling him the truth. But in his state of mind it did.

He smirked and chuckled in a way that made her blood run cold. Abruptly, he grabbed her and forced her against a wall the hallway, pinning her by her arms.

Before he could speak, she interjected. "I haven't taken my vervain today. Maybe you can just compel an answer out of me. That is what you want, right?" she spat, forcing him off her with a violent shove. "Oh wait, you can't because you promised me that you would never compel me. Remember that?" She scoffed.

"And you promised that you would always tell me the truth." he bit back.

She flinched. "I'm sorry, Klaus. I really am, but I can't tell you. Not now. Why can't you just trust me?" There was a twinge of pleading in her voice. She rarely pleaded for anything, but she needed this. She needed him to understand that this was her cross to bear.

Blinded by anger, he ignored her wide, desirous eyes. "I suppose you leave me no choice." he said. He grabbed her by her shoulders and forced her to look him in the eyes.

"Klaus, please. Don't." she begged, struggling in his grasp as she tried to break free. "Nik."

For a slip-second she thought her would let her go, but that hope was lost as soon as his lips parted and he spoke the six simple, yet detrimental, words she feared. "What are you hiding from me?"

Unable to hold her tounge, she answered him. "I'm still looking for Charlotte. I tortured anyone who had information about her." her voice was monotonous, almost robotic.

"Why did they turn up dead if you didn't kill them?" he demanded.

Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes, but she blinked them away before answering. "She did it, Charlotte. I think she's trying to frame me."

Satisfied, yet seemingly full of regret, he relinquished his hold on her. "I'm sorry I had to do that." he said. His voice was deep and she could hear the anguish in it.

"Don't apologize." she snapped. "I don't want to hear it. Just get away from me." A few silent tears slipped down her cheeks, clinging to her chin before falling on her shirt.

He reached out to her, but she quickly pulled away. Without another word, he turned around and was gone in the blink of an eye.

Feeling powerless and betrayed, she crumbled to the floor, leaning against the wall as she silently sobbed. She wasn't just upset that Klaus had compelled her, or that he didn't trust her as she trusted him. What bothered her more than anything was the thought that her life's work was now possibly ruined.

One of the only things she had wanted for her entire immortal life was to kill Charlotte, the vampire who had singlehandedly destroyed her life. Belle had tried for years to find her and kill her, but something always got in the way. That something being Klaus.

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**A.N.- I'm sorry for leaving off here, but I'll be doing a pretty lengthy flashback to continue and I decided that it would be best if I put it with the next chapter. If anyone has any suggestions please PM me or post a review! I'm struggling a little with how to include everything that still needs to be said. I hope you guys like flashbacks ;)**


	8. Chapter 8

**A.N.- Season 2 is incredible so far! Sorry, I just had to get that out. Anyway, if anyone has any questions or suggestions then please include them in a review or PM. Thanks!**

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Another week had passed as Belle continued to dive deeper and deeper into her search. She had tortured three other vampires and was on her way to find the next.

Word of her mission had spread like wildfire throughout the Quarter and as a result, it seemed like everyone was avoiding her, fearing her infamous wrath. She hated it. Unlike Klaus, Belle didn't want others to be afraid her, to quake with fear at the sound of her name. It made her feel even more isolated than she already did.

Coping with loneliness wasn't one of her strengths. She had half a mind to call Klaus and apologize, but she knew better. She kept telling herself that she wasn't the one with something to apologize for.

She reminded herself that technically she hadn't really lied to Klaus, just withheld the whole truth. Yet, no matter how many times she told this to herself, she didn't believe a word of it.

Though she didn't consider what she had done to be lying, she knew that Klaus did. And that thought left her with a pit in her stomach and an ache in her heart that she couldn't get rid of.

She hated herself for hurting him. And she hated him for hurting her. It was just an endless cycle of hatred and furry, like a game of tug-of-war that was evenly matched on both sides. It left her feeling empty and exhausted.

As she strode down the darkened streets, she was struck with a familiar memory - one she had dreaded for centuries.

Klaus hadn't always been opposed to her revenge fantasy. In fact, he had once encouraged it. But that changed after one particularly horrific night.

_1635_

Covered in her own blood, Belle stumbled through the door, screaming for Klaus as she choked back blood. She was hunched over, unable to stand up straight, with one hand covering the wound in her chest and the other on the wall as she tried to keep her balance.

He rushed into the room and looked at her with wide eyes. "Belle!" he exclaimed. He rushed over to her side as she stumbled and nearly fell to the floor. "What happened? Who did this?" he demanded. He swept her into his arms and carried her over to a nearby table, gently lying her fragile body on the hard mahogany.

She coughed violently, spewing a few dribbles of blood onto her already ruined dress. "I was searching for Charlotte. I found one her friends in a town not far from here," she paused as she struggled to catch her breath. "But she, she tried to stake me. I pulled it out, but a few pieces of it are still inside me. I can feel them scraping against my heart." Tears fell from her eyes and slipped down into her hair as she cried out in pain.

He nodded sternly, motivated by anger and fear. "Try not to move." he commanded before he began carefully trying to remove the splinters as best he could without causing her too much discomfort.

Through the agony, she saw in his eyes that he was terrified. The fear only seemed to grow with each scream that escaped her lips. She hated upsetting him, so she clenched her jaw tightly and tried to stay quiet. If she hadn't been in immense pain, she would have laughed. Even on the brink of death, she was still selfless. Especially when it came to him. It had been a habit from her human years that she had never managed to break.

It took him almost an hour to pluck the splinters out of her. She gasped as the last one, the one that had been closest to puncturing her heart, was out. She took a few deep breaths as she body healed itself.

"Are you alright?" he asked. He reached over and moved a curl away from her face.

She nodded weakly, forcing a small smile to put his mind at ease. "Yes. Thank you, Nik." she whispered.

She expected him to smile back at her, or show some kind of relief, but instead she saw anger. A white hot furry burned in his eyes. "I'll kill her myself and anyone who attempts to aid her." She could tell from the way her spoke that he was about to start making more threats and plotting an elaborate revenge scheme.

"Nik, please." she began, gathering her strength as she forced herself off the table to go stand by his side. She put a hand on his shoulder. "This isn't your fight."

He shook her hand off and turned to look into her eyes. "You nearly died not an hour ago. Haven't I the right to be angry? To defend you, my closest friend?" he said with conviction. "Would you not do the same for your family?"

"Yes, of course, but we are not family." she said.

He took a step closer to her, taking her hand. "I believe we are. Family is much more than simply those with whom we share blood. Don't you agree?" he asked.

She struggled to wrap her mind around his words. Family? He considered her to be family? The word sent a shock throughout her entire body. That was the last thing she wanted to be in his eyes.

Deep down in the darkest pit of her heart she knew how she truly felt about him, but she was too afraid to say it out loud.

So, she simply nodded and painted a small smile on her face. "Yes." She paused. "But, that doesn't mean you should fight my battles for me."

He flinched, seeming offended by her words. His ego was more fragile than the most precious tea set. "Who would you expect to fight them for you when you are clearly incapable of doing so yourself? You want her dead and I can do it for you. It'll take me no time at all." he said.

She clenched her teeth. If he hadn't just saved her life, she would have punched him square in the jaw. "How dare you. Do you think of me as a child? I am not! This is my revenge and I will seek it alone."

He stepped closer, grasping her carefully by the arm. "You misunderstand me. I do not believe you are a child, I simply want to help you and keep you out of harm's way. You're my friend, Belle." he said, his eyes softening. "You're my family." he added.

She shook her head firmly. "No, I refuse to give up." she insisted with blatant determination.

"No, you won't. You'll die."

The fear she had seen earlier in his eyes had returned. She had only seen that look a handful of times in her centuries with him - all of which were when someone threatened to leave him, whether it was a sibling or a friend. It broke her to see him that way. Despite every instinct, every nerve in her body, she gave in. For him.

She looked up at him with tears brimming and cascading down her face, and nodded solemnly.

_Present_

She had struggled for years to avoid it, to keep her promise to Klaus. But she couldn't.

There are some people who need something to do, something to give their life a sense of purpose. Belle was, without a doubt, one of those people. Revenge had become a bigger part of her life than she had originally intended. She knew that. And that knowledge absolutely terrified her.

She snapped back to reality when she caught sight of the vampire she had been looking for, a former friend of hers from the '80s. Well, _friend_ was a very strong word. Her name was Skylar and, as Belle had recently learned, she happened to be on of Charlotte's favorite pets.

Before she could follow Skylar, the last person she wanted to see stood in her path. "Get out of my way, Niklaus." she spat through clenched teeth.

He crossed his arms over his chest. "And why should I do that? Do you have somewhere to be? " he said disdainfully.

She rolled her eyes. "It's none of your business what I'm doing or where I'm going, so back off. Got it?" She grew more annoyed by the millisecond.

"I know you're still on your little mission of vengeance and all, but I'd prefer that, if you're determined to get yourself killed, you do it somewhere else. The last thing I want is for the vampires of my city to fear for their safety within the walls of their own homes." he said. His sarcastic, laid-back façade made her want to tear out her own hair and choke him with it.

"Get away from me." she growled, resisting the urge to slap the antagonizing grin off his face.

He took a step closer, which only made her angrier. "And why should I do that?"

"Because I don't want to see you. I don't want to talk to you. I don't want to be anywhere near you!"

"Then why don't you leave? No one's stopping you."

"Trust me, as soon as my work is finished here, I'm gone. For good."

"Fine by me."

His words cut through her like knives. Despite what she said, she didn't want to leave. She loved New Orleans. The best years of her life were there. Klaus had been the reason she had come there three-hundred years before, and now he would be the reason she would leave.

So many things needed to be said in that moment, but all she said was, "Go fuck yourself.", before storming off after Skylar's bleached blond pixie-cut in the distance.

She ignored that pesky voices in her head that shouted "go back" and focused on the task at hand. The sooner she found and killed Charlotte, the sooner she could leave behind her old life. Maybe she'd give herself a new name. Dye her hair. Move to a foreign country, never to be heard from again. That sounded nice.

She cornered Skylar in an alley, snapped her neck, and brought her to an abandoned building a block down the road. It had become such a routine thing for her that she didn't even have to put much thought into it.

This time, she had to put more effort into getting the answers she so desperately wanted.

"You know, you used to be fun back in the day. What happened to you?" Skylar groaned in pain as Belle twisted the blade that was jammed into her femoral artery.

Belle laughed. "This is fun, don't you think?" she said before yanking the blade out of Skylar's leg, who yelped in pain. "Well, I guess it's just fun for me." She put the blade down on the floor before returned her attention to the latest fly she had tangled in her web. "All this fun can end if you just tell me where to find Charlotte. Come on, be smarter than everyone else. Take the easy way out." she prodded.

Skylar shook her head. "No, no I can't. She'll kill me. I can't do it." she said sheepishly. A idea seemed to spark in her eyes. "But I know someone who will. He's a new kid, Charlotte just met him. He'll crack like an Easter egg. I swear."

Belle contemplated her suggestion for a second or two, before answering. "And who might this gullible little sap be?"

"His name is Josh. Josh Rosza." she whimpered. "Now please let me go."

She scoffed on disbelief. "Josh? Baby vampire. Dark hair. Brown eyes. Gay as a daisy in May. That Josh. Really?"

Skylar nodded as though her life depended on it, which it did, in a way. "Yes. Now let me go." she begged.

Reluctantly, Belle unlocked the locks to the chains that bound her and let her go.

She stared out into the darkness that poured into the dim room after Skylar fled. She knew what she had to do. It was the last piece of the puzzle she had been trying to solve for nine-hundred years.

She just prayed that Josh was really as easy to crack as she hoped. It'd be a shame to have to torture her little brother's new boyfriend. She really wanted them to stay together. At least one of them deserved to have a lasting relationship before they were a thousand. God knows it wouldn't be her.


	9. Chapter 9

**A.N.- Please keep up the support and review! If anyone has any suggestions on things you wanna see (well, read technically) then please PM me or leave them in a review. I'm sorry this is kind of a short chapter. Anyway, enjoy :) (WARNING: not a happy chapter)**

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Song - Trading Yesterday: _Shattered_

The fire of determination burned bright in her baby blue eyes. She struggled to put words to the feeling that filled her soul. She could feel it in her bones; the end was near. Not her end, but the end of her misery.

The only thing that had kept her going all these years was the thought that one day she could reach into Charlotte's chest and tear her heart from it, watching the life leave her eyes - the life that she had stolen not only from Belle and from Max, but from Belle's daughter, Lilith. She remembered it as clearly as she had centuries ago.

_Bewildered and without her wits, Belle rushed around anxiously as she tried to find her daughter. Belle had searched the entire village twice and still found no sign of her ._

_She ran out to the forest in hopes of finding her daughter there, alive and well. Terrified more than likely, but still alive. Her worst fear came to life when she stumbled across a familiar smell - blood. Fresh blood. Alarmed, she ran as quickly as she could in its direction._

_The sight she stumbled upon was one that would haunt her for all on eternity. Her precious, innocent little Lilith was keeled over at the edge of a clearing where they would always go to pick wildflowers in the spring. As though she were in a trance, Belle walked over to the horrific sight._

_With each step, more and more of the scene came into her view. Lilith's once perfectly white dress was stained with bright crimson blood; the blood was everywhere. It had spilled out onto the earth below and onto the tiny pink and purple flowers she had once loved._

_Belle knelt down and picked up her lifeless body, looking into her deep brown eyes. Belle had always adored her eyes. They always had a glimmer of child-like wonder in them that was awe-inspiring. But, when Belle looked into them in that moment she saw nothing._

_Belle cried out to her, wishing that she would wake up, but knowing that nothing could save her. She was gone._

_Tears cascaded down her face as waves of agony crashed over her. She rested her head on Lilith's unmoving chest and shut her eyes, longing to heart her steady heartbeat and gently breathing to lull her to sleep so she could wake up from the nightmare that her life had suddenly become._

After nine-hundred years, she still hadn't woken up from that nightmare. She hoped that avenging her daughter's untimely death would open up a new chapter of her life; a better one. One where she could once again find the complete happiness she hadn't known since her human life.

It was nearly four a.m. when she arrived at the Mikaelson's. She had checked Josh's apartment a half-hour earlier, but it was empty. The front door was locked, so she broke off the doorknob and forced her way in. She stomped through the courtyard and into the living room where she found Josh sitting on the couch with Max, with several respective inches between them, and Marcel sat in a chair across from them. They spoke quietly among themselves, but fell silent once they noticed her lurking in the entryway.

"I need to talk to Josh." she said firmly, getting right to the point. She wasn't in the mood for conversational foreplay. They all stared at her, confused. "Now." She raised her voice. Her eyes were locked on Josh's now slightly terrified ones.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Marcel asked. He shifted in his seat to look at her.

She rolled her eyes. "To talk to Josh, obviously."

"Why?" Max demanded, crossing his arms over his chest as if to somehow intimidate her.

"None of your business." she retorted.

"Still keeping secrets, I see. And from your own brother. Tragic." Klaus boomed from a few feet behind her as he descended from upstairs.

She clenched her fists, debating whether on if she should punch him or not. It was obvious that she wanted to. She cursed under her breath.

"I'm guessing your over the little tantrum you had earlier." Klaus said. "Why else would you be here?"

She walked further into the room, trying to get away from him. "Get off your high horse, princess. The world doesn't revolve around you." She threw a dangerous look in Klaus's direction before returning her attention to the matter at hand. "Now, Joshua, all you have to do is tell me where she is and we can all move on with our lives. Okay?" Her voice was as threatening as her glare.

Josh stirred under the pressure. "I - I don't know who you're talking about." he said anxiously. A single bead of sweat dripped down his temple.

She rolled her eyes. "You're a horrible liar. You know who I'm talking about, so just tell me. I'll get it out of you one way or the other. No talk." Her patience was wearing very thin.

Suddenly, it seemed like Josh's discomfort and fear escalated to full on panic. He shot up from his seat and tried to run out of the room. Unfortunately for him, Belle was much older and therefor much faster. She ran and caught him by the throat, slamming him against the wall so hard it shook the entire room.

"I've had a really crappy couple of days and it'd really make me happy if you would just make things easy and tell me where it is I can find Charlotte. Okay?" A small, sick smile crept onto her face, which was twisted in frustration. She was exhausted and out of patience.

Josh squirmed under her grasp. "I can't she'll kill me!" he protested.

"Not if I kill her first."

Max ran up behind Belle and pulled her off Josh. She then turned her anger on him. "Stay out of this, Max." she warned.

"I'm trying to stop you." He placed a firm hand on her shoulder, holding her in place.

"From what?" she demanded.

"From doing something you'll regret."

She scoffed at him. "You're quite a few centuries too late for that." She grabbed his hand and forced it off. "My whole life is basically a series of doing things I regret."

Max looked confused. "What's that supposed to mean?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Nothing." She turned to Josh. "You're not off the hook. Talk, or I'll do things worse than death to you." she threatened.

Josh swallowed hard.

"Since when are you opposed to killing? You seem to have no problem massacring a good number of vampires over the past few weeks you've been back." Marcel said.

Belle turned to Klaus, her expression a combination of anger and confusion. "You didn't tell him?"

"Tell me what?" Marcel asked.

Klaus shrugged. "Must have slipped my mind." he replied simply. He gave one of his common guilty playing innocent looks.

She rolled her eyes. "I don't have the time or the patience to get involved in your damn drama. Sort it out among yourselves later." With a sudden burst of energy, she pushed Max out-of-the-way and jammed her fist into Josh's chest, getting a tight hold on his heart. He gasped in pain. Practically bipolar, her emotions quickly changed to a blinding rage. "Where is she?" she screamed in his face. If anyone in the compound hadn't already been woken up by the commotion, they would have definitely been awoken by her outburst.

"She's at the docks at the edge of town. She's been moving around from place to place ever since you showed up." he said quickly.

She could see in his eyes that he was truly afraid for his wasn't the only thing she saw. She saw her own reflection mirrored in his eyes, staring back at her with the same fury Josh and everyone else around her did. She then realized what she truly was. She had forgotten it over the years, or maybe just ignored it, but in that instant it was an undeniable fact. Just like the Earth is round and the sky is blue, she was a monster.

She suppressed the crushing feelings of self-loathing that crept out from the darkest corners of her mind and released Josh from her grasp, unharmed. "Now was that so hard?" she asked with false zeal. She turned around to the shocked faces of Max and Marcel, and the more disappointed face of Klaus. "After I've paid Charlotte a little visit, I'll be out of you lives for good. So don't worry." She hid the angst in her voice and wiped the blood off on her jeans before walking out of the room with her head held high.

On her walk home, the image of Klaus's face was stuck in her mind as though it had been super-glued there. That was probably the worse thing; knowing that she had disappointed him.

Somehow, she managed to hold herself together until she reached the familiar comfort of her apartment. She closed the door softly and slid down to the floor, pulling her knees to her chest as a flood of tears poured down her face like a dam had burst.

She felt like she was a child again, helpless. She could practically hear her mother saying, "_What's wrong with you, Belinda?"_ For most of her childhood she had felt like nothing more than a nuisance, a burden, a waste of space. Worthless. "What's wrong with me?" she whispered.

She sat on the floor until the sun started to rise when she was overcome with exhaustion, both physical and emotional. With what strength she had left, she pulled herself up from the floor and went to bed. She would need her strength.


	10. Chapter 10

**A.N.- I'm going to keep this short and sweet. Please read, enjoy, and review. Thanks :)**

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Songs:

Plumb - _Don't Deserve You_

Ed Sheeran - _Bloodstream_

Out of every thought that had run through her head that day, the one that managed to make its way into her dreams was one that brought her a confusing mixture of feelings.

New York - 1922

"You too, Nik." Belle replied. Her entire face lit up when her lips curled into a small, genuine smile.

Klaus returned his attention to the group of unruly, drunken men. "Gentlemen, give us some privacy. We have a lot of catching up to do." he said firmly.

She suspected that Klaus had compelled them to obey him because they stood up without so much as a weak complaint and went to occupy an empty corner of the room. She didn't say anything on the subject. She just raised an inquisitive eyebrow at him before taking a seat.

It had been nearly a year since they had seen one another, but to a vampire, that was nothing. However, she still had missed him, maybe more than she was willing to admit. She missed talking with him more than anything, so that's just what they did. They exchanged stories, some old, some new, for hours while they admittedly had a little too much to drink. By the time the clock struck midnight they were both fairly drunk and Belle was doubled over laughing for no particular reason.

Klaus looked at her in amusement. "Why are you laughing?" he asked, trying to suppress his own laughter.

"I don't know!" she exclaimed. Tears were rolling down her face by that point. She took a few seconds to pull herself together, wiping away the tear streaks with her gloved fingers before they smudged her makeup. She turned to Klaus with wide eyes. "Come dance with me." she said, jutting out her bottom lip.

He remained where he sat, obstinate as usual. "You can go if you want." he said dismissively. He took a long drink from his bourbon.

A long sigh escaped her ruby lips. She set her arms on the table and laid her chin on them, glaring at him from the corner of her eye. "Please, Nik? I'm bored." She tilted her head so she could look at him directly. "Please?" she repeated, dragging it out this time.

He exhaled deeply before finishing his drink. He reluctantly made his way to the end of the booth where he stood and offered her his hand. "Come ono

She grinned widely before getting up and taking his extended hand as he led her over to the dance floor.

They danced in perfect timing with the lively jazz music that filled the room with a vibrant exuberance until they were both out of breath. The tempo suddenly slowed to a gentle lull as a slower song began. Accordingly, each couple switched to a slower dance.

The pair gently swayed back and forth. Belle had lost count of the number of times they had danced together throughout the centuries, but something was different that night. Maybe it was the liquor that pumped through their veins. Or the smooth alto of the saxaphone that filled their ears. Or the sensation of romance that surrounded them. Or maybe a combination of the three. She hadn't realized what she was doing until it was already done. Her lips met with his for fraction of a second before she quickly pulled away, embarrassed and baffled. Without a word, she freed herself from his grasp and walked away, pushing past anyone who stood in her way.

She grabbed a glass of champagne from a small silver tray and went to the back of the room. She leaned against the wall, focusing on the tiny lights that were mirrored in the golden liquid.

What had she been thinking? How could she be so reckless? Admittedly, she had always wondered what it'd be like to kiss him, to finally learn the taste and feeling of his lips. But she had always told herself that if she gave in to the temptation it would be the undoing of years upon years of friendship. There had always been a sort of silent agreement between them to not get romantically involved, and she had breached that agreement in one impulsive act.

Interrupting her train of thought, Klaus approached her, striding headstrong across the room with a look of sheer determination that perplexed her. He was all of a step away from her when he plucked the glass from her slender fingers and downed it in one fluid motion. He sat it down on a table next to them. Her eyebrows knit together. Before she could speak his lips pressed against hers, eager and fearless. She didn't fight it, ignoring her rational side and giving in. The forbidden fruit that was Klaus Mikaelson was just too sweet for her to resist any longer.

She didn't have the slightest idea how long it had been - minutes, hours, years, she could care less. Eventually they managed to part. She saw the undeniable look of longing that burned in his eyes that was undoubtedly blazing in her own. They both grinned from ear-to-ear. She saw that her red lipstick was smudged on his lips, so she wiped it away with her thumb, chuckling under her breath. Her hands cupped his face as she lightly stroked the blonde stubble along his jaw.

His eyes flickered to the exit before he looked back at her. "Come with me." he whispered. His voice was quiet and husky. A small shiver went up her spine. She nodded. He took her hand and they left quickly. She held on tightly to his hand as she trailed behind him through the masses of people.

They soon arrived in front of the hotel where he was staying and rushed up the stairs, racing each other. Soon they arrived at the top floor where Klaus unlocked the door to his suite, which was, as per usual, more extravagant than what was really necessary. She didn't really get a good look at it before he pinned her to a couch that was almost ten feet from the front door. The suddenness of his actions caused her to gasp in delight. Their lips locked once more and stayed that way for nearly the rest of the night.

The sun rose above the city skyline the next morning, casting a series of shadows onto the bedspread. Belle's eyes blinked open, taking in the surroundings. She smiled to herself, clutching the covers closer to her chest.

She turned onto her other side, facing the rest of the bed - her face fell when she saw that it was empty. She reached out and touched the empty spot next to her where Klaus should have been. It was cold.

She frowned and sat up, wrapping a cream-colored sheet around herself as she stood up. The suite was silent, aside from the creaking of the bed, which worried her deeply.

Cautiously, she padded over to the door and opened it; she didn't hear or see anyone. His scent had even faded away. She checked the rest of the place only to come up empty. He was long gone. Her head and heart filled with disappointment, anger, betrayal, and, most of all, hurt. He had deserted her like she was just another one of his meaningless flings. A part of her thought that, maybe in his eyes, she was.

Present

Once she realized how late it was, Belle shot up out of bed, changed her clothes, and was out the door in record timing. It was already nighttime, so she needed to get a move on before Charlotte chose to move again.

The full moon illuminated puddles in the streets, giving the illusion that there were many small moons scattered across the pavement - she paid little attention to them, beautiful as they may be. She had to keep her focus on the task at hand. After walking around 10 more blocks she found it, the place where Josh had so kindly told her Charlotte was hiding out. With determination, she slid the heavy metal doors open with ease and stepped inside. She knew he hadn't been lying; Charlotte's stench was everywhere. She remembered it clearly.

"Come on out, Charlotte. Let's finish what we started." she called as she walked between rows of old, broken down boats that where housed there. Charlotte always had a knack for staying in run-down places.

There was a sound about a hundred yards away that caught her attention. She flashed to its source in a matter of seconds. To her shock and despair, she hadn't found Charlotte, or any other vampire for that matter. She was face-to-face with two hulking werewolves, masses of fur and muscle. She exhaled deeply. "You wanna play games, Charlotte? Fine by me." she said, her voice echoing through the building.

Belle looked into the eyes of the first wolf, grinning wickedly at it. It bared its razor-sharp teeth at her, a wicked grin of its own. Without hesitation, she lunged forward, snapping its neck before it could make a move.

With her back turned to it, the other werewolf took the opportunity to attack. It lurched forward and tackled her to the ground, snapping it jaws. She held it back and struggled as she tried to force it off. Before she could stop it, or even register what was happening, the wolf viciously tore into her neck. She summoned all her strength to push it off of her, not that it did her any good. She slammed herself into its side, crushing its ribs before she managed to break its neck. Without a moment's hesitation, she ran away from the savage scene to try to find Charlotte.

Her scent was fresh, but Belle realized that she was no longer there. She had fled like the coward she was.

Defeated, Belle crumbled to the floor. She slammed her fist on the concrete beneath her until it cracked. She took a few deep breaths to calm her nerves before pulling out her phone, which was miraculously undamaged, and dialed Max's number. It rang a few times before he picked up. "What is it?" he asked.

"Max, I need help."

He had picked her up at the docks and taken her back home. A few hours had passed as he tried repeatedly to call Klaus, but kept getting his voicemail. "Why can't we just go over there? I know Klaus is pissed at you, but he has to help you." Max implored, setting his phone down on the coffee table. He picked up a cool washcloth from a bowl of water and put it on her forehead.

She swatted his hand away and put the cloth down. "He doesn't have to do anything. And he's more than pissed at me. I betrayed his trust - that's not something he takes lightly." she said. She pulled herself up from the couch and began pacing back and forth. A bead of sweat rolled down her forehead from the fever. When that werewolf bit her, it bit her hard. Feeling the venom burning like a wildfire in her veins, she knew she had twelve hours left, at best, before she would be beyond Klaus's help. She fanned herself with her hand before tugging her long-sleeved shirt over her head, leaving her in a charcoal grey tank-top. "God, I'm hot." she groaned. "I haven't had a fever since I was nine."

Max frowned. "Don't worry, we'll get Klaus to cure you." he insisted. Her brother was always an optimist.

She, on the other hand, was a realist. "Yeah, you and what army? He's stubborn. He wont budge. If he hasn't answered you by now he probably won't." She looked him directly in the eyes as she spoke. "The hallucinations should set in soon, so that should be fun." she said sarcastically.

She stumbled back over to the couch, losing her balance. Before she fell, Max caught her and helped her down. At the exact moment he touched her, the first wave of hallucinations hit her like a train. In her weakened state, the wall to her thoughts was down, leaving her vulnerable. She could tell by the look in his eyes that he had seen her thoughts. He was terrified.

It hadn't been very clear, just flashes of light, faces, and blood. So much blood. The faces were those of their mother, father, and siblings. The blood was also theirs. It stained her hands and her face.

Max backed away with wide, hardened eyes. "Is it true?" he asked. His voice was cold, yet fragile, like an icicle.

"Max, just let me explain." she began. She stood up and walked toward him, trying to calm him down.

He pulled away and gave her an icy glare. "Is it true?" he repeated.

She hesitated, trying to figure out the right thing to say. "Yes." she whispered. "It was an accident, I swear. Just please let me explain." she added. Her eyes begged him to listen.

He seemed to ignore the look of misery in her eyes and instead focused solely on the guilt. He shook his head. "I don't want to hear it." he turned on his heel and stormed out, slamming the door shut and leaving her alone and utterly dejected. She laid back down on the couch and covered her eyes with her hands as she sobbed hopelessly. Tears poured down the sides of her face and spilled onto the cushion below her head.

She had forced away the only person she felt actually still cared about her, not on purpose of course. It was like the universe wanted her to be alone; every person she ever loved ended up leaving one way of another. She and Max had managed to stay together over the years since they had turned because they were the only family each other had. Now that he knew she was the reason, she knew he would never forgive her.

Not that it would matter, she'd be dead before too long.

Hours passed by and she could feel herself growing weaker and weaker as the venom coursed through her. Sunlight was starting to pour into the room. She was still curled up on the couch when something caught her eye, a little girl. The girl wore a white dress and had long black hair that was perfectly straight. Her skin was like alabaster and her dark brown eyes were set into a delicate heart-shaped face. Belle recognized her immediately. "Lilith." Belle whispered.

The girl smiled. "Come play with me, mother." She giggled before turning around and walking through the front door, literally.

She gathered what strength she had left and rushed after her. Deep down she knew it was all in her head, but she couldn't think straight. She walked down the winding staircase, trying to see where Lilith went. Once she got downstairs, Belle caught a glimpse of her walking out the front door that stood open. She continued to follow her through the crowded streets until she was led into a small store that was nearly empty.

Suddenly, the ghostly figure of her daughter disappeared into thin air. She looked around frantically, trying to find her, but she was gone. Belle quickly stumbled upon another familiar face, her mother's, followed by those of her father, her other brother, and her sister. They were all wearing the clothes they had worn on the night she had turned, when she had slaughtered them. "You're, you're all dead. You're not real. None of this is real." she said, her voice quivered with fear.

Her mother reached out and stroked her cheek. Belle swore that she could feel it. "And why are we dead?" her mother whispered.

A tear slipped down her cheek before she whispered, "Because I killed you." Belle looked up into her mother's eyes that were identical to her own.

Her face hardened and she pulled her hand away. "That's right." she spat.

"We should have know you would be the undoing of our family." her father said. He stared at her with cold, dead eyes like he always had.

She shook her head. "You're not real." she whispered. "You're dead. Go away!" she demanded. A chorus of laughter erupted from them. "Go away!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. She lunged at them, ripping out their throats and draining the blood from their bodies, just like she had done years before.

She stood back and blinked rapidly as the hallucination subsided. She let out a sigh in relief. It was over. But, when she looked down at her hands they were still covered in blood. Her eyes moved to a trail of blood on the white tile floor. It led to a small pile of bodies, four to be exact. In her sickened haze, she had mistaken those innocent people for her dead family members.

Defeated, she fell to the floor and cried. That's all she could do.

She lost track of time as the fire in her veins spread further and further through her body. Her breathing became ragged and her vision started to blur. "This is the end." she whispered. She closed her eyes, preparing to let the darkness take over, when she heard something. The front door opened and someone walked in. She knew it was just her fever-brain playing tricks on her, but she saw Max. Not as he was earlier that day, but as he was when they were human. "I'm sorry, Max." she whispered. "I didn't mean to do it. Please forgive me." Tears rolled down her pale cheeks, streaking the blood around her mouth. She shivered violently, as though a cold wind had swept through the room. "I'm sorry. I failed."

Whoever it really was remained silent. They picked her up and carried her away. She clung to them and shut her eyes. Maybe she was dead and the person was her angel, taking her away to whatever peace there was to be found, if there was any.


	11. Chapter 11

**A.N. - I'm sorry it took me a little longer to upload this chapter - honestly,I'm just lazy. Anyhow, I want to continue getting further into Belle's past and the romance. I'd love to get more reviews, so please leave one with any comments. (no flames) thanks :) **

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Song: Charlotte Martin - _Complications_

She forced her heavy eyelids open. The first thing she saw was the familiar pale ceiling of her old room at the compound. Was she dead? Was this her so called _peace_? Glancing down, she saw that she was still wearing the same bloodied clothes from the night she was attacked. The blood was no longer red, but a rusty-brown color. She looked around the room in curiosity. Her expression hardened when her eyes met Klaus's. He sat in a chair across from the bed she was lying on with an amused expression painted on his face. She groaned. "Am I in hell?"

He rolled his eyes. "No. You have me to thank for that." He stood up as he spoke, walking over to her with his hands folded behind his back. He looked at her expectantly.

"You saved me?" she asked, sounding genuinely surprised. She shook her head as she tried to make sense of everything. "What changed your mind?"

He stared back at her, trying to mask his emotions. It didn't work - she saw right through him. "What do you mean?" he asked flatly.

She rolled her eyes, knowing he knew exactly what she meant. "Not 24 hours ago you practically left me for dead when you refused to pick up your damn phone and then you suddenly had a change of heart and decided to be the good guy. Why?" She raised an eyebrow as she watched his mind work.

He folded his hands together, flexing his fingers. "I feel that death would be too harsh of a punishment for you." he replied. She couldn't ignore the anger in his voice. Granted, Klaus was usually angry, but never really at her.

That upset her, but she tried to ignore it, thinking that would make the pit in her stomach go away. "Punishment? Yeah, I'm sure." She smirked at him, trying to lighten the mood; his eyes softened a little. She sat up and stretched her stiff and slightly numb limbs, feeling like she had been asleep for days. "How long have I been out?"

"Two days." he said.

She laughed under her breath. "Wonderful." She looked down at her bloody clothes again, noticing faint blood stains on her palms as well. "I should get cleaned up." she moved to the side of the bed and pushed herself up. She suddenly felt extremely weak and light-headed. As soon as her feet hit the floor she nearly collapsed. Thankfully, Klaus was quick to catch her.

"You need to feed." he said before reaching for a blood bag that was on the night stand. She took it carefully in her hands - it was about room temperature. She smiled, realizing that he must have been waiting for her to wake up for a few hours, at least.

Instinctively, she uncapped the bag and drained it in seconds. She hadn't expected to be so hungry. When it was empty she put it down, wiping away the blood on her face with the back of her hand. She looked up at him; a hint of embarrassment flashed across her face. "Thanks." She pulled away from his grip and walked towards the bathroom. She lingered in the doorway for a moment, turning back to him. "Are we okay now?" she asked, unsure if she really wanted to know the answer.

His lips parted for a fraction of a second, like the answer he sought was just on the tip of his tounge. "Perhaps." he finally said. That made her uneasy. He was the only relatively stable thing in her life at the time; she couldn't lose him. Without another word, he turned and walked out.

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When she stepped out of the bathroom, a damp towel wrapped around her body, she discovered a pair of blue jeans and a long-sleeved T-shirt in a neat stack at the foot of the bed. She picked them up and sniffed them cautiously; they smelled faintly of Hayley, probably some of the things she could no longer fit from the pregnancy.

Once she was dressed, she turned to check herself in the mirror above the dresser. The sleeves of the shirt were awkwardly long and she had to fold the hem of the jeans three times before she could walk properly. She frowned a little, feeling like the a kid whose mom made them to wear their older cousin's hand-me-downs. She wasn't in a position to be finicky, so she didn't complain. After a few minor adjustments, she decided to head downstairs in search of a drink.

It didn't take long until she discovered the treasure chest of liquor in the Mikaelsons's kitchen. She eyed the dozens of bottles with a hint of disdain, trying to find exactly what she wanted. Eventually she settled on a 175 year old bottle of wine that had a name even she struggled to pronounce.

With the bottle in one hand, she used the other to try to grab a wine glass from the top shelf; someone must have moved them so they were out of her reach. "Damn these T-Rex arms." she muttered. She was up on her tip-toes when she lost her balance - thankfully, someone caught her. "Elijah." she said as she turned to face him. "My knight in Calvin Klein."

He scoffed, reaching past her to grab a wine glass from the shelf. "It's Armani, actually." He brought the glass down to her level and handed it to her by the stem.

She took it from him and placed it on the granite countertop before she began rummaging through the drawers in pursuit of a corkscrew. "I'm guessing you didn't come in here to bicker about your pompous fashion sense. You want something; what is it?" she asked, turning to glance at him over her shoulder before continuing to search the drawers.

Elijah reached into the drawer to his right and pulled out a corkscrew like he was magician pulling a rabbit from a top-hat. He clutched it between his thumb and index finger as he passed it to her. "You've always been rather intuitive. Surely you already know what I want to ask you."

She rolled her eyes as she took the cork out of the bottle. "I'm not a mind-reader, Elijah. But, I think I have a good idea. I'm guessing it has something to do with Charlotte and why she's here." She poured the wine into her glass and turned to face him, holding it lightly in her fingers.

"You know more about her intentions than anyone else in this city, so please enlighten me." He locked his eyes on hers.

She brought the glass to her lips and took a sip, waiting a few seconds before replying. "I wish I knew. From what I can tell her only goal is to ruin my life even more than she already has." She noted his confused expression and elaborated. "She's my sire. Because of her, I murdered my parents and siblings when I first turned, aside from Max obviously, and then, being the sadistic bitch she is, she killed my daughter." She took another sip of her wine as she watched Elijah process everything she had just told him; they had never been close so he didn't know very much about her. Belle honestly didn't even remember if she had told him that she had even had a daughter.

"That's..." he trailed off, at a loss for words.

"Really fucked up?" she suggested. "I'm well aware of that. Anyway, I'm going to continue to pursue her until one of us is dead. It's not your problem."

Elijah opened his mouth to speak, but before he could get a syllable out Hayley walked into the room. "Elijah," she said.

He turned around quickly, like it was an instinct. "Yes?" he asked. Belle saw the clear devotion in his eyes when he looked at Hayley.

"Klaus wants to talk to you." she said, drumming her fingers on the wall next to her.

He nodded. "Thank you. I'll speak with him in a moment." A faint smile tugged at the corners of his lips - Hayley's lips did the same. Hayley cleared her throat as if to break the tension before she turned and walked away.

When Elijah returned his gaze to Belle she was blatantly smirking. "Is something amusing?" he asked.

"Your ignorance." she replied. She wagged her eyebrows, taunting him. "You're in love with her, aren't you?"

Caught off guard, he seemed to search his thoughts for an excuse or a quick lie. "I don't know what you're," he began.

Belle rolled her eyes, cutting him off. "You're in denial, I get it. You're in love with the mother of your unborn niece or nephew and you don't want Klaus or anyone else to know because you feel guilty." She waved her hand in his direction dismissively. "Relax, I'll keep your secret between the two of us." Despite her seemingly careless attitude to the subject, she really did sympathize with Elijah.

"It's only fair, seeing as I've kept yours for centuries." he said in a low tone. "Although, it's not much of a secret." he added smugly.

She raised an eyebrow in questioning. "You've been keeping what a secret?" She was absolutely clueless. She feared that she had said something to him years before, whether drunk or sober, and forgotten about it; it was impossible to keep up with every conversation she had ever had over the course of her life.

"You're in love with Klaus." he said. He wasn't arrogant about it, just honest.

Elijah had always sought Klaus's redemption, using any positive thing in his life to bring back what humanity he had left. Perhaps Elijah saw her feelings for Klaus as another way to mend him.

Belle stared at him in disbelief. She had always though her feelings had been well hidden - now she knew how wrong she really was. Her mind swirled like a tornado, distraught at the thought of anyone else knowing of her secret. She couldn't even begin to imagine what to say to Klaus if he knew - she couldn't even think of what to say to Elijah. So, she did what any rational girl would do, she took her wine and fled the room like it was on fire and made her way to one of the upstairs balconies, maybe the roof. She had to distract herself from the thoughts that gnawed at her subconscious, trying desperately to break free. She wouldn't allow them to. If she admitted it to herself completely then she would no longer be able to live in the precious bubble of denial she had been in for so long. She wasn't sure if she or Klaus could handle the truth.


	12. Chapter 12

**A.N.- If you liked this chapter and/or have any questions or comments then please review, thanks :)**

**Also, I'm trying to add in a few elements from the show, as you'll find in this chapter. However, I'm still not following the show's plot - I prefer going in my own direction.**

* * *

Song: Taylor Swift - _Wildest Dreams_

Belle rummaged through the closet in search of something white, a color she despised and rarely wore - many of her childhood dresses had been white and she had always hated them.

It was the day of New Orleans's annual Casket Girls Festival and she only had seven hours until the celebration would begin. New Orleans was know for its parties and parades, one of the things she had always loved. Each festival was packed with history and culture, not to mention the drunk tourists that made perfect party favors.

She huffed once she decided to give up. "I guess I have to go dress shopping." she muttered as she pulled the closet doors shut.

As she walked down the hallway, she heard Elijah's voice coming from Hayley's room. She couldn't resist snooping, or rather "attending to her curiosity" as she preferred to put it.

Elijah stood behind Hayley after he zipped up the back of her dress. "I think you look lovely." he said quietly. He smiled before he began unzipping the dress for her. Hayley clutched it to her chest.

Belle, still lingering in the doorway, cleared her throat obnoxiously. Hayley and Elijah whipped their heads around to look at her. Elijah's hands slipped in the process, causing him to rip the back of the dress a little.

Hayley sighed. "Damn." Belle wasn't sure whether Hayley was upset about the dress tearing or about her moment with Elijah being ruined.

"What are you doing, Belinda?" Elijah asked. He glared at her like they were two children on a beach and she had just demolished his sandcastle.

She chuckled, shaking her head at them. "I was going to ask Hayley if she needed a dress since I'm about to go get one myself. Clearly you do now." she gestured to Hayley.

"Yeah, just give me a minute to change." Hayley said before grabbing a pair of leggings and a sweater from a pile on her bed. She went into her bathroom and shut the door.

Belle smirked at Elijah before she turned and left. She passed by Rebekah just a few steps down the hall.

"If you're going to get a dress I'm go with you." Rebekah said, standing in Belle's path with a slightly self-righteous posture.

Belle rolled her eyes. "Please, feel free to just invite yourself."

Rebekah shrugged. "I am the reason behind this whole Casket Girls commemoration after all." she said.

"Yes, we've all heard the story a million times. Once upon a time you selflessly rescued a group of helpless, innocent girls. Blah blah blah." She didn't try to hide the irritation in her voice. Hopefully Rebekah would get annoyed and decide to go shopping on her own time. To her dismay, Rebekah stubbornly refused to budge. Belle exhaled loudly. "We're leaving as soon as Hayley's ready. I'm driving."

Hayley rounded the corner, adjusting her shirt a little. "I'm ready." she said, eyeing the two vampires expectantly.

Belle nodded and they headed out. However, before they reached the exit Klaus walked by, eyebrows raised in suspicion. "Where are you lot off to?" he inquired, eyeing Hayley apprehensively.

"Relax, we're just going down the street to find dresses for tonight. I'll babysit Hayley if that's what you're worried about." Belle replied, trying to ease his agitation.

Hayley seemed annoyed. "Yeah, I'm not a child and I'm not a prisoner."

"I never said you were, love." Klaus insisted. "By all means, carry on." There was a twinge of uncertainty in his voice. It wasn't that he was concerned about Hayley so much as he was concerned about the baby she was carrying.

Belle gave him a reassuring look that said, "_don't worry, I'll keep her safe_". He nodded. They continued their path to the front gate and walked down to the end of the block where Belle's car was parked. "Shotgun." Hayley declared, opening the passenger door.

Belle laughed at Rebekah's annoyed expression. "Could you two be any more childish?" Rebekah muttered as she got into the back seat.

They drove for a few minutes until they pulled up in front of a small dress shop at the edge of the French Quarter. It was packed with other women doing their last-minute shopping for the celebration. There were racks full of nothing but white dresses throughout the entire store. "Let's not take forever. That means you, Beks" Belle said, glancing at Rebekah who resisted rolling her eyes. The three girls headed off in their own directions. It was a small store; they could easily find one another if needed. Belle kept an eye on Hayley as she reviewed the selection of dresses in the maternity section.

It didn't take Belle long to find her dress - she knew she'd probably hate it anyway. She brought it up to the counter to pay.

Standing near the counter was a little girl, no older than 6 or 7 with long black hair and brown eyes. She was holding up a little white dress, admiring the lace detail. Belle swallowed hard, painfully being reminded of her daughter. The girl's mother walked up behind her and grabbed her by the arm gently. "Come on Jenna, we have to go." she said. The girl turned around and nodded. Her mother took the dress from her small hands and hung it back up on the rack. The woman met Belle's eyes for a second, politely smiling. Belle smiled back, trying to hide the envy that welled up inside her.

"Miss," the cashier called, pulling Belle from her daze. She smiled apologetically and handed the man the dress and swiped her credit card once it was scanned. She spotted Hayley on the opposite end of the store and walked over her.

"Need any help?" she asked.

Hayley was putting a stack of at least four dresses back on the rack. She turned to Belle, looking a little defeated. "Yes. I've tried on almost every dress in my size and I can't find anything I like."

Belle nodded understandingly. "Well, fear not. I'm sure I can find you something."

Hayley smiled. "Thanks."

They searched for half an hour until they finally found the perfect dress. "This is the one." Hayley said happily, grasping either end of the skirt and spinning a little to get a better look.

Belle smiled a little. "Great. You go change and then I'll pay for it. But first, I need to go find Original Barbie." she said before pivoting on her heel and going back to the front of the store. Rebekah, as expected, wasn't done yet. "Come on princess. It's a festival, not a wedding. Hurry up." She tapped her foot impatiently.

Rebekah scoffed. "I've never understood where you get off telling me what to do - I'm an Original, therefore I'm older and stronger than you." She turned to face Belle with her arms crossed over her chest and pouty lips.

"Okay, you've got the Original part right, but we both know I'm still stronger." she said, wearing a _duh_ look.

Rebekah stepped closer to Belle, trying to intimidate her. "You're a little too confident. Perhaps we should test your theory." she challenged.

The offer tempted her, but her rationality kicked in just in time. Rebekah usually only acted that way when she had fought with someone earlier. It always put her in an unusually aggressive mood. Belle's money was on Marcel. "You can just stay here and walk home, okay? I'll take Hayley home." she suggested.

Rebekah just nodded and continued flipping through the racks. Belle found Hayley, paid for the dress, and the two of them left.

They pulled into Belle's parking space little while later. Before they got out, Belle looked at Hayley. "Hey," she started. Hayley turned to face her, curiosity sparked in her eyes. "You seem like the kind of girl who knows what she wants, so I'll give you a piece of advice I wish someone had given me. Don't be afraid to do what scares you. Go for what you want, before it's too late." she said sternly.

Hayley seemed to understand what Belle meant without her having to actually come out and say it. She nodded before opening her door and stepping out. Belle did the same. "You should take your own advice." Hayley said without an ounce of doubt.

Belle was a little dumbstruck. She had taught many people life lessons over the years, but no one had ever turned one around on her. She couldn't help but think that maybe Hayley was right.

* * *

The sun had set and the festival was in full swing. Belle stood in front of the mirror as she smoothed out her dress. The lace hem came down to an inch or two above her knees. The dress had a deep-v neckline and its sleeves were long and laced and went a little past her wrists. She didn't love it, but she didn't hate it. _At least it looks good_, she thought. She headed downstairs and went outside where the celebration was.

The city was alive with color and music. She found Klaus standing along the street as the parade marched by. "These festivals are probably my favorite thing about this city." she said, not taking her eyes off the parade.

"Is that why you came back?" he asked sarcastically, bitterness dripping from every word.

She swallowed hard. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you my true intentions. Really." she assured him. Her eyes wandered to his stone face.

He continued to avoid her eyes. "You waited eight hundred years before you started lying to me. That's longer than most I suppose." he mused. He seemed unsure of how to feel, somewhere between angry and understanding.

"I didn't want to. I just, I couldn't give up on it. I still can't." she insisted. She chewed her bottom lip nervously. "Can you forgive me?" she asked, no, pleaded. No one could deny the desperation that filled her voice.

He didn't answer, he simply walked away. She saw uncertainty mixed with yearning flash across his face before he had turned away. Hayley's words rang in her head, "You should take your own advice.". For a moment she was ready to listen to her and chase after him, but fear struck her. She felt stuck. As much as she wanted to, she just couldn't bring herself to do it. She was a coward and she cursed herself for it.

Defeated, she turned and walked in the opposite direction. She wouldn't let him ruin her evening. Apparently Klaus had the same mentality. A few minutes later, she saw him drinking with Marcel and some nightwalkers, seeming to be having the time of his life. Normally in this situation she would go find Max, but she knew that would be a mistake. Besides, she didn't even know where he was. She did, however, manage to find Josh. He was drinking alone against a brick wall looking broody.

She walked up to him, looking him over. "Why the long face?" she asked. She was both curious and concerned.

He took a drink of his beer before answering. "Your brother dumped me." He looked at her pathetically.

She frowned. "I'm sorry. What happened?" She had played the shoulder-to-cry-on more times than she cared to remember when it came to Max's exes.

"Why don't you ask him?" he deadpanned.

Belle scoffed, leaning along the wall by him. "We're still not on speaking terms. I haven't seen him for a week." She exhaled deeply. They exchanged familiar upset expressions before Josh reached into the case of beer next to him and offered it to her. She had never liked cheap liquor - it tasted like river water to her, but desperate times called for desperate measures. She decided she would just stick with the one.

About two hours later she found herself back at the compound in the clothes she had worn earlier that day, sitting by her window and looking out at the city, deep in thought. She wasn't sure whether everyone else was still out or had already returned home. Honestly, she wouldn't notice either way.

She turned her head and looked around the room she didn't feel comfortable calling her own. The place she had once called home, the man she had once called friend, now seemed foreign. She felt unwanted, like she had over-stayed her welcome even though she had only been staying at the compound for a week. The way Klaus had looked at her earlier that night had ignited something inside her, pulling her back to reality. For once in what felt like a long time she felt like she could think clearly. She decided that she would be better off leaving. She would find Charlotte, who was still in the city, kill her, and leave. For once, she had to do what was right for her. So, she packed up what she had with her and headed downstairs.

Just before she reached the exit, she ran into Klaus. She was surprised to find him nearly sober. "Where are you going?" he asked, noticing her luggage and determined expression

"Back to my apartment. I've been staying here for a week, so I figured it's about time I head back. Besides, I'm sure Max is long gone." she lied. She wasn't lying to him really, more so to herself.

He didn't buy it. "Don't lie to me, Belle. Why are you leaving?" he asked, firmer this time.

She scoffed, moving around him. "Don't act like you care." She walked as fast as she could to her car. It was pouring rain so she doubted Klaus would follow her out. She threw her suitcase into the trunk of her car, but before she could get in she saw Klaus chasing after her. He stopped about fifty feet away from her. "What the hell are you doing?" she called. The rain had completely soaked through her clothes by that point.

"You didn't answer me." he said, raising his voice, though she could have heard him clearly even if he had whispered.

"Yes I did." she snapped. She was thankful no one else was around to see them arguing in the pouring rain like they were in The Notebook.

"You lied to me. I want the truth."

She laughed. "The truth, you want the truth?" she asked in disbelief. "Fine, here's your truth. I don't think I can stand being around you anymore."

He looked puzzled. "Why do you think that?" he yelled. The wind was picking up, drowning out their words in its furry.

"Because your mood swings are driving me absolutely insane! You're hot one minute and cold the next. Do you forgive me, or don't you? Are we still friends or aren't we? Just tell me because I can't tell for myself." She felt angry tears stinging her eyes. She was glad he couldn't tell.

"What is it you want me to say?" he demanded, clearly becoming more agitated by the second. They both were.

"I don't know! That's why I'm standing out here in the pouring rain like freaking Rachel McAdams! I don't what I want!"

He took a few steps forward. "I understand now why you don't lie - you're terrible at it. You do know what you want, so just say it." he said. His voice was kinder than before, but his annoyance was still there. "Say it." he insisted.

Her mouth gaped slightly. She searched her thoughts for the right words, but she couldn't find any. She had waited centuries for this moment and now she had stage-fright. Part of her wanted to laugh. "I, I can't." she choked out.

He raised an eyebrow. "Can't, or won't?" he prodded. His patience was wearing thin.

She shook her head. It was her turn to walk away instead of answering. She had forgotten about her car, about where she was going. All she could think about was avoiding the words she was most afraid to say.

"Where are you going?"

"Away from you." She trudged on through the rain. Tears were streaming down her face, disguised as raindrops.

"Belle," he called.

She whipped around to face him. "What?" she yelled. Her voice broke like glass.

Before she could register what was happening, he was right in front of her, just an inch away. He didn't speak. She didn't speak; she didn't get the chance to. He crashed his lips against hers with enough force to move Heaven and Earth. He kissed her with a passion she had never felt before, more powerful than anything she could imagine in her dizziest daydreams. And she kissed him back with everything she had. She wrapped her hands around the back of his neck, entangling her fingers in his hair as she pulled him down to her. He put his hands on her waist and pulled her even closer.

Eight hundred years of truth came rushing to the surface. He didn't have to say it; he loved her. As deeply and purely as she loved him. That was all that mattered.


End file.
